Biorefinery system, methods and compositions thereof

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure relates to bioengineering approaches for producing biofuel and, in particular, to the use of a C 1  metabolizing microorganism reactor system for converting C 1  substrates, such as methane or methanol, into biomass and subsequently into biofuels, bioplastics, or the like.

STATEMENT REGARDING SEQUENCE LISTING

The Sequence Listing associated with this application is provided in text format in lieu of a paper copy, and is hereby incorporated by reference into the specification. The name of the text file containing the Sequence Listing is 200206_404C1_SEQUENCE_LISTING.txt. The text file is 146 KB, was created on Aug. 19, 2015, and is being submitted electronically via EFS-Web.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to bioengineering approaches for producing biofuel and, in particular, to the use of a C₁ metabolizing microorganism reactor system for converting C₁ substrates, such as methane or methanol, into biomass and subsequently into biofuels, bioplastics, or the like.

2. Description of the Related Art

With the ever increasing depletion of fossil fuel deposits, the increasing production of greenhouse gases and recent concerns about climate change, substituting biofuels (e.g., ethanol, biodiesel) for fossil fuels has become an industrial focus. But, biofuels generated to date have their own difficulties and concerns. First generation biofuels are derived from plants (e.g., starch; cane sugar; and corn, rapeseed, soybean, palm, and other vegetable oils), but these fuel crops compete with crops grown for human and animal consumption. The amount of farm land available is not sufficient to satisfy both global food and fuel needs. Therefore, second generation biofuels are being produced from, for example, cellulose or algae. But, technical difficulties in production, along with the high cost of production, have not made second generation biofuels any more cost-effective or accessible.

Third or next generation biofuels made from alternative feedstocks (i.e., not sugar, corn, algae) are needed. In this regard, methane is one of the most abundant domestic carbon feedstocks and is sourced primarily from natural gas. The recent rise in domestic production of methane (from 48 bft³/day in 2006 to 65 bft³/day in 2012) has driven the cost of natural gas to record lows (from about $14.00/MMBTU in 2006 to about $2.50/MMBTU in 2012). Domestic natural gas is primarily produced by hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”), but methane can also be obtained from other sources, such as landfills and sewage. In addition, capturing methane sources will have a significant environmental benefit since methane has a 23× greater greenhouse gas contribution relative to CO₂.

But, methane's volatility makes transportation and direct usage as a fuel problematic. For this reason, there is a strong incentive to convert the gas to a liquid form to allow for easy transport to the point of use. Two main approaches are currently being pursued: liquefaction leading to liquefied natural gas (LNG) and chemical conversion to convert gas-to-liquid (GTL) (Patel, 7th World Congress of Chemical Engineering, Glasgow, Scotland, UK, 2005). The Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) process is currently the most prevalent GTL approach for converting methane from natural gas to higher-order hydrocarbons (Patel, 2005). Note that the F-T process takes syngas as an input which is produced from natural gas by steam reforming (syngas can also be sourced from coal gasification, by high-temperature reaction with water and oxygen). The F-T process yields petroleum products consistent with today's fuel supply, but suffers from a number of drawbacks, including low yields, poor selectivity (making downstream utilization complex), and requires significant capital expenditure and scale to achieve economical production (Spath and Dayton, December 2003 NREL/TP-510-34929). The massive scale required for an F-T plant (more than $2 B capital cost for a typical plant [Patel, 2005]) also represents a significant limitation due to the large amount of methane feedstock required to supply continuous operation of such a plant. As methane transportation is prohibitively expensive in most cases, such a plant must be co-located with either a large gas source or a pipeline. An additional cost and scaling factor is the economics of gas-scrubbing technologies (Spath and Dayton, 2003), as F-T catalysts are highly sensitive to common contaminants in natural gas that survive the syngas conversion process.

F-T plants have been in operation semi-continuously since 1938. Several companies are currently investigating introduction of new plants given the current availability and price of methane discussed above. However, despite significant research and development over the last 70+ years, the limitations of F-T technology prevent broad adoption of commercial GTL processes. The requirements for ready access to large volumes of clean gas, combined with massive capital investment, currently limit natural gas based F-T plants to successful operation in only a few locations world-wide (Spath and Dayton, 2003). The high minimum processing requirement for a GTL or LNG plant, combined with the high cost of transport, result in smaller methane sources being referred to as ‘stranded’ gas (for example, natural gas produced at off-shore oil wells, or methane off-gas from landfills). In the current absence of efficient small-scale conversion technologies, such stranded gas sources are typically vented to atmosphere or flared, as methane accumulation presents a significant safety risk.

In view of the limitations associated with the production of first, second and next generation biofuels, there is clearly a need in the art for new methods of efficiently and cost-effectively producing alternative fuels without taxing the environment or competing with food production. The present invention solves this problem by providing efficient and cost-effective methods for producing biofuels and other products using bioengineering.

BRIEF SUMMARY

In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism biomass having a δ¹³C of less than about −30‰, or ranging from about −40‰ to about −60‰. In other aspects, the present disclosure provides an oil composition or a biofuel composition having molecules comprising hydrogen and carbon atoms, wherein the hydrogen and carbon atoms are at least about 50% to about 99% of the weight of the composition and wherein the δ¹³C of the composition ranges from about −35‰ to about −50‰, −45‰ to about −35‰, or about −50‰ to about −40‰, or about −45‰ to about −65‰, or about −60‰ to about −70‰, or about −30‰ to about −70‰.

In certain embodiments, the present disclosure provides C₁ metabolizing microorganisms that are prokaryotes or bacteria, such as Methylomonas, Methylobacter, Methylococcus, Methylosinus, Methylocystis, Methylomicrobium, Methanomonas, Methylophilus, Methylobacillus, Methylobacterium, Hyphomicrobium, Xanthobacter, Bacillus, Paracoccus, Nocardia, Arthrobacter, Rhodopseudomonas, or Pseudomonas. In further embodiments, C₁ metabolizing bacteria are a methanotroph or a methylotroph. Exemplary methanotrophs include Methylomonas, Methylobacter, Methylococcus, Methylosinus, Methylocystis, Methylomicrobium, Methanomonas, or a combination thereof.

Exemplary methanotroph species include Methylomonas sp. 16a (ATCC PTA 2402), Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b (NRRL B-11,196), Methylosinus sporium (NRRL B-11,197), Methylocystis parvus (NRRL B-11,198), Methylomonas methanica (NRRL B-11,199), Methylomonas albus (NRRL B-11,200), Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (NCIMB 11132), Methylobacter capsulatus Y (NRRL B-11,201), Methylobacterium organophilum (ATCC 27,886), Methylomonas sp. AJ-3670 (FERM P-2400), Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, Methylocella silvestris, Methylacidiphilum infernorum, Methylibium petroleiphilum, Methylococcus capsulatus Bath, or high growth variants thereof.

Exemplary methylotroph species include Methylobacterium extorquens, Methylobacterium radiotolerans, Methylobacterium populi, Methylobacterium chloromethanicum, Methylobacterium nodulans, or a combination thereof.

In still further embodiments, the present disclosure provides C₁ metabolizing microorganisms that are syngas metabolizing bacteria, such as Clostridium, Moorella, Pyrococcus, Eubacterium, Desulfobacterium, Carboxydothermus, Acetogenium, Acetobacterium, Acetoanaerobium, Butyribaceterium, Peptostreptococcus, or any combination thereof. Exemplary syngas metabolizing bacteria include Clostridium autoethanogenum, Clostridium ljungdahli, Clostridium ragsdalei, Clostridium carboxydivorans, Butyribacterium methylotrophicum, Clostridium woodii, Clostridium neopropanologen, or any combination thereof.

In certain other embodiments, C₁ metabolizing microorganisms are eukaryotes such as yeast, including Candida, Yarrowia, Hansenula, Pichia, Torulopsis, or Rhodotorula.

In further embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a recombinant microorganism comprising a heterologous polynucleotide encoding a fatty acid producing enzyme, a formaldehyde assimilation enzyme, or a combination thereof. In certain embodiments, the heterologous polynucleotide encodes a thioesterase, a malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase, an acetyl-CoA carboxylase, or any combination thereof. For example, the thioesterase may be a codon optimized E. coli tesA lacking a periplasmic targeting sequence; the malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase may be a codon optimized E. coli fabD; and the acetyl-CoA carboxylase may be a codon optimized E. coli accA, accB, accC, accD, or any combination thereof. In certain further embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing microorganism further comprises a mutation that minimizes or eliminates fatty acid-CoA ligase activity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary conceptual model of a C₁ metabolizing microorganism reactor system for methane capture and conversion into an alkane fuel in accordance with certain embodiments of this disclosure.

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary conceptual model of a C₁ metabolizing microorganism reactor system for methane capture and conversion into biodiesel in accordance with certain embodiments of this disclosure.

FIGS. 3A and 3B show that recombinant Methylobacter capsulatus expressing TesA′ (TesA gene from E. coli with the periplasmic targeting sequence removed) causes (A) an increase in in free fatty acid production, and (B) the increase was primarily due to increased levels of C16:0 and C18:0 lipids.

FIGS. 4A and 4B show GC/MS chromatograms of an oil composition extracted from M. trichosporium before (A) and after (B) hydrolysis and transesterification with KOH in toluene:methanol.

FIGS. 5A and 5B show GC/MS chromatograms of an oil composition extracted from M. capsulatus before (A) and after (B) hydrolysis and transesterification with KOH in toluene:methanol.

FIGS. 6A and 6B show GC/MS chromatograms of an oil composition extracted from Methylomonas sp. 16a before (A) and after (B) hydrolysis and transesterification with KOH in toluene:methanol.

FIG. 7 shows a schematic of the δ¹³C distribution of various carbon sources.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The instant disclosure provides compositions, methods and systems for generating biofuels and bioplastics, in which C₁ metabolizing microorganisms are cultured to generate biomass maximized for bio-oil accumulation. For example, a methane-to-biofuel fermentation process is provided, which is a scalable commercial process. This new approach can use, for example, methylotroph or methanotroph bacteria as a new host system to generate biomass for biofuel in the form of, for example, esterified biodiesel or alkane fuels for hydrotreatment, or for bioplastics in form of polyhydroalkanoates (PHAs). Furthermore, an oil composition of interest can be obtained from methylotroph or methanotroph bacteria because these organisms can accumulate significant quantities of membrane lipids under conditions described herein and, moreover, these microorganisms produce high membrane content.

By way of background, methane from a variety of sources, including natural gas, represents an abundant domestic resource. Chemical approaches developing gas-to-liquids (GTL) technology to improve the use of methane as a fuel have met with only limited success to date despite significant investment. In contrast, little effort has been expended to deploy modern bioengineering approaches toward GTL process development. Several limitations, most notably the cost of sugar feedstocks, have prevented the economical production of biofuels using microbial systems. Exploiting inexpensive, domestically abundant carbon feedstocks, such as methane, represents an economically sustainable biofuel production alternative. New production microorganisms have been developed with new bioengineering tools and techniques to provide an industrial-scale GTL bioprocess as described herein. Furthermore, fuel properties following refining and upgrading of extracted lipids demonstrate the drop-in potential for applications such as diesel, gasoline, jet fuel, or olefins.

In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a method for making fuel by refining an oil composition derived from a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism in a refining unit to produce fuel. Additionally, this disclosure provides a method for making fuel by converting biomass from a culture primarily comprising a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism into an oil composition and refining the oil composition into a fuel. In another aspect, this disclosure provides a biorefinery that includes a processing unit in which an oil composition is derived from a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism; and a refining unit for refining the oil composition to produce a fuel.

In still another aspect, the instant disclosure provides an oil composition or biofuel composition derived therefrom having molecules comprising hydrogen and carbon atoms, wherein the hydrogen and carbon atoms are at least about 50% to about 99% of the weight of the composition and wherein the δ¹³C of the composition is less than −30‰ or ranges from about −70‰ to about −35‰, or, when blended with a fuel component to produce a fuel product, ranges from about −37‰ to about −10‰. In a related aspect, the instant disclosure provides a biomass having a δ¹³C of less than −30‰ or ranging from about −35‰ to about −50‰, −45‰ to about −35‰, or about −50‰ to about −40‰, or about −45‰ to about −65‰, or about −60‰ to about −70‰, or about −30‰ to about −70‰.

Prior to setting forth this disclosure in more detail, it may be helpful to an understanding thereof to provide definitions of certain terms to be used herein. Additional definitions are set forth throughout this disclosure.

In the present description, any concentration range, percentage range, ratio range, or integer range is to be understood to include the value of any integer within the recited range and, when appropriate, fractions thereof (such as one tenth and one hundredth of an integer), unless otherwise indicated. Also, any number range recited herein relating to any physical feature, such as polymer subunits, size or thickness, are to be understood to include any integer within the recited range, unless otherwise indicated. As used herein, the term “about” means ±20% of the indicated range, value, or structure, unless otherwise indicated. The term “consisting essentially of” limits the scope of a claim to the specified materials or steps, or to those that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed invention. It should be understood that the terms “a” and “an” as used herein refer to “one or more” of the enumerated components. The use of the alternative (e.g., “or”) should be understood to mean either one, both, or any combination thereof of the alternatives. As used herein, the terms “include,” “have” and “comprise” are used synonymously, which terms and variants thereof are intended to be construed as non-limiting.

As used herein, “C₁ substrate” or “C₁ compound” refers to any carbon containing molecule or composition that lacks a carbon-carbon bond. Exemplary C₁ substrates include natural gas, unconventional natural gas, syngas, methane, methanol, formaldehyde, formic acid or a salt thereof, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, methylated amines (e.g., methylamine, dimethylamine, trimethylamine, etc.), methylated thiols, methyl halogens (e.g., bromomethane, chloromethane, iodomethane, dichloromethane, etc.), cyanide, or any combination thereof.

As used herein, “C₁ metabolizing microorganism” or “C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism” refers to any microorganism having the ability to use a C₁ substrate as a source of energy or as its primary source of energy and biomass, and may or may not use other carbon substrates (such as sugars and complex carbohydrates) for energy and biomass. For example, a C₁ metabolizing microorganism may oxidize a C₁ substrate, such as methane or methanol. C₁ metabolizing microorganisms include bacteria (such as methanotrophs and methylotrophs) and yeast. In certain embodiments, a C₁ metabolizing microorganism does not include a photosynthetic microorganism, such as algae. In certain embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing microorganism will be an “obligate C₁ metabolizing microorganism,” meaning its sole source of energy are C₁ substrates. In further embodiments, a C₁ metabolizing microorganism (e.g., methanotroph) will be cultured in the presence of a C₁ substrate feedstock (i.e., using the C₁ substrate as a source of energy).

As used herein, the term “methylotrophic bacteria” refers to any bacteria capable of oxidizing any compound in any form (e.g., solid, liquid, gas) that contains at least one carbon and that do not contain carbon-carbon bonds. In certain embodiments, a methylotrophic bacterium may be a methanotroph. For example, “methanotrophic bacteria” refers to any methylotrophic bacteria that have the ability to oxidize methane as a source of carbon and energy, which may be the primary source of carbon and energy. Exemplary methanotrophic bacteria include Methylomonas, Methylobacter, Methylococcus, Methylosinus, Methylocystis, Methylomicrobium, or Methanomonas. In certain embodiments, the methylotrophic bacterium is an “obligate methylotrophic bacterium,” which refers to bacteria that are limited to the use of C₁ substrates for the generation of energy. In certain embodiments, methylotrophic bacteria are “facultative methanotrophic bacteria” that are naturally able to use multi-carbon substrates, such as acetate, pyruvate, succinate, malate, or ethanol, in addition to C₁ substrates as their carbon and energy source. Facultative methanotrophs include some species of Methylocella, Methylocystis, Methylocapsa (e.g., Methylocella silvestris, Methylocella palustris, Methylocella tundrae, Methylocystis daltona SB2, Methylocystis bryophila, and Methylocapsa aurea KYG), and Methylobacterium organophilum (ATCC 27,886).

As used herein, the term “CO utilizing bacterium” refers to a bacterium that naturally possesses the ability to oxidize carbon monoxide (CO) as a source of carbon and energy. Carbon monoxide may be utilized from “synthesis gas” or “syngas”, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen produced by gasification of any organic feedstock, such as coal, coal oil, natural gas, biomass, or waste organic matter. CO utilizing bacteria does not include bacteria that must be genetically modified for growth on CO as its carbon source.

As used herein, “syngas” refers to a mixture comprising carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂). Syngas may also include CO₂, methane, and other gases in smaller quantities relative to CO and H₂.

“Growth” is defined as an increase in cell mass. This may occur through cell division (replication) and the formation of new cells during “balanced growth,” or during “unbalanced growth” when cellular mass increases due to the accumulation of a specific compound or polymer, such as certain lipids. In the latter case, growth may be manifest as an increase in cell size due to the accumulation of a biopolymer within the cell.

During “balanced cell growth,” all of the feedstocks (electron donors and electron acceptors) and all of the nutrients are present in the ratios required to make all of the macromolecular components of a cell. That is, no feedstock or nutrient limits the synthesis of proteins, complex carbohydrate polymers, fats, or nucleic acids. In contrast, during “unbalanced cell growth,” a feedstock or nutrient needed to make one or more of a cell's macromolecules is not present in an amount or ratio required for balanced growth. Accordingly, this feedstock or nutrient becomes limiting and is referred to as a “limiting nutrient.”

Some cells may still achieve net growth under unbalanced conditions, but the growth is unbalanced and polymers that can be synthesized in the absence of the limiting feedstock or nutrient will accumulate. These polymers include lipids or intracellular storage products, such as the polydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), including polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), polyhdroxyvalerate (PHV), and polyhydroxyhexanoate (PHHx)-glycogen, or secreted materials, such as extracellular polysaccharide. Such oil compositions are useful in the production of bioplastics.

Exemplary balanced and unbalanced growth conditions may differ in the nitrogen content in the media. For example, nitrogen constitutes about 12% of dry cell weight, which means that 12 mg/L nitrogen must be supplied (e.g., in a nitrate or ammonium salt form, along with a feedstock and other nutrients in the required stoichiometric ratios) to grow 100 mg/L dry cell weight. Without wishing to be bound by theory, this assumes that fixation of atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia (i.e., via nitrogen fixation) does not represent a significant source of nitrogen for biosynthetic intermediates or cellular constituents. If other feedstock and nutrients are available in the quantities needed to produce 100 mg/L of dry cell weight, but less than 12 mg/L nitrogen is provided, then unbalanced cell growth may occur, with accumulation of polymers that do not contain nitrogen. If nitrogen is subsequently provided, the stored polymer may serve as feedstock for the cell, allowing balanced growth, with replication and production of new cells.

As used herein, the term “growth cycle” as applied to a cell or microorganism refers to the metabolic cycle through which a cell or microorganism moves in culture conditions. For example, the cycle may include various stages, such as a lag phase, an exponential phase, the end of exponential phase, and a stationary phase.

The term “exponential growth”, “exponential phase growth”, “log phase” or “log phase growth” refer to the rate at which microorganisms are growing and dividing. For example, during log phase, microorganisms are growing at their maximal rate given their genetic potential, the nature of the medium, and the conditions under which they are grown. Microorganism rate of growth is constant during exponential phase and the microorganism divides and doubles in number at regular intervals. Cells that are “actively growing” are those that are growing in log phase. In contrast, “stationary phase” refers to the point in the growth cycle during which cell growth of a culture slows or even ceases. The term “growth-altering environment” refers to energy, chemicals, or living things that have the capacity to either inhibit cell growth or kill cells. Inhibitory agents may include mutagens, drugs, antibiotics, UV light, extreme temperature, pH, metabolic byproducts, organic chemicals, inorganic chemicals, bacteria, viruses, or the like.

As used herein, “high growth variant” refers to an organism, microorganism, bacterium, yeast, or cell capable of growth with a C₁ substrate, such as methane or methanol, as the sole or primary carbon and energy source and which possesses an exponential phase growth rate that is faster than the parent, reference or wild-type organism, microorganism, bacterium, yeast, or cell—that is, the high growth variant has a faster doubling time and consequently a high rate of growth and yield of cell mass per gram of C₁ substrate metabolized as compared to a parent cell (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,689,601).

As used herein, “biofuel” refers to a fuel at least partially derived from “biomass.”

As used herein, “biomass” or “biological material” refers to organic material having a biological origin, which may include one or more of whole cells, lysed cells, extracellular material, or the like. For example, the material harvested from a cultured microorganism (e.g., bacterial or yeast culture) is considered the biomass, which can include cells, cell membranes, cell cytoplasm, inclusion bodies, products secreted or excreted into the culture medium, or any combination thereof. In certain embodiments, biomass comprises the C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of this disclosure together with the media of the culture in which the C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of this disclosure were grown. In other embodiments, biomass comprises a C₁ metabolizing microorganisms (whole or lysed or both) of this disclosure recovered from a culture grown on a C₁ substrate (e.g., natural gas, methane). In still other embodiments, biomass comprises the spent media supernatant from a culture of C₁ metabolizing microorganism cultured on a C₁ substrate. Such a culture may be considered a renewable resource.

As used herein, “oil composition” refers to the lipid content of a biomass (e.g., bacterial culture), including fatty acids, fatty acid esters, triglycerides, phospholipids, polyhyroxyalkanoates, isoprenes, terpenes, or the like. An oil composition of a biomass may be extracted from the rest of the biomass material by methods described herein, such as by hexane or chloroform extraction. In addition, an “oil composition” may be found in any one or more areas of a culture, including the cell membrane, cell cytoplasm, inclusion bodies, secreted or excreted into the culture medium, or any combination thereof. An oil composition is neither natural gas nor crude petroleum.

As used herein, the term “host” refers to a cell or microorganism (e.g., methanotroph) that may be genetically modified with an exogenous nucleic acid molecule to produce a polypeptide of interest (e.g., thioesterase [tesA], acetyl-CoA carboxylase [accABCD], malonyl-CoA-ACP transacylase [fabD]). In certain embodiments, a host cell may optionally already possess or be modified to include other genetic modifications that confer desired properties related or unrelated to the lipid biosynthesis (e.g., deleted, altered or truncated long-chain fatty acid-CoA ligase [fadD]). For example, a host cell may possess genetic modifications that minimize or reduce the degradation of fatty acids, minimize or reduce production of host cell growth inhibitors, provide high growth, tolerance of contaminants or particular culture conditions (e.g., acid tolerance, biocide resistance), ability to metabolize additional carbon substrates, or ability to synthesize further desirable products or intermediates.

As used herein, “recombinant” or “non-natural” refers to an organism, microorganism, cell, nucleic acid molecule, or vector that has at least one genetic alteration or has been modified by the introduction of a heterologous nucleic acid molecule, or refers to a cell that has been altered such that the expression of an endogenous nucleic acid molecule or gene can be controlled. Recombinant also refers to a cell that is derived from a cell or is progeny of a cell having one or more such modifications. Genetic alterations include, for example, modifications introducing expressible nucleic acid molecules encoding proteins or enzymes, or other nucleic acid molecule additions, deletions, substitutions or other functional alteration of a cell's genetic material. For example, recombinant cells may express genes or other nucleic acid molecules that are not found in identical form within the native cell (i.e., unmodified or wild type cell), or may provide an altered expression pattern of endogenous genes, such genes that may otherwise be over-expressed, under-expressed, minimally expressed, or not expressed at all.

Recombinant methods for expression of exogenous or heterologous nucleic acids in microbial organisms are well known in the art. Such methods can be found described in, for example, Sambrook et al., Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual, Third Ed., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York (2001); and Ausubel et al., Current Protocols in Molecular Biology, John Wiley and Sons, Baltimore, Md. (1999). Exemplary exogenous proteins or enzymes to be expressed include thioesterase, one or more acetyl-CoA carboxylases, malonyl-CoA-ACP transacylase, or any combination thereof. Genetic modifications to nucleic acid molecules encoding enzymes, or functional fragments thereof, can confer a biochemical or metabolic capability to a recombinant cell that is altered from its naturally occurring state.

As used herein, the term “endogenous” or “native” refers to a gene, protein, compound or activity that is normally present in a host cell. The term “homologous” or “homolog” refers to a molecule or activity from an exogenous (non-native) source that is the same or similar molecule or activity as that found in or derived from a host cell, species or strain.

As used herein, “heterologous” nucleic acid molecule, construct or sequence refers to a nucleic acid molecule or portion of a nucleic acid molecule sequence that is not native to a cell in which it is expressed, a nucleic acid molecule or portion of a nucleic acid molecule native to a host cell that has been altered or mutated, or a nucleic acid molecule with an altered expression as compared to the native expression levels under similar conditions. For example, a heterologous control sequence (e.g., promoter, enhancer) may be used to regulate expression of a gene or a nucleic acid molecule in a way that is different than the gene or a nucleic acid molecule that is normally expressed in nature or culture. In certain embodiments, a heterologous nucleic acid molecule may be homologous to a native host cell gene, but may have an altered expression level or have a different sequence or both. In other embodiments, heterologous or exogenous nucleic acid molecules may not be endogenous to a host cell or host genome, but instead may have been added to a host cell by conjugation, transformation, transfection, electroporation, or the like, wherein the added molecule may integrate into the host genome or can exist as extra-chromosomal genetic material (e.g., plasmid or other self-replicating vector).

In certain embodiments, more than one heterologous or exogenous nucleic acid molecule can be introduced into a host cell as separate nucleic acid molecules, as a polycistronic nucleic acid molecule, as a single nucleic acid molecule encoding a fusion protein, or any combination thereof, and still be considered as more than one heterologous or exogenous nucleic acid. For example, a C₁ metabolizing microorganism can be modified to express two or more heterologous or exogenous nucleic acid molecules, which may be the same or different, that encode one or more thioesterases as disclosed herein. In certain embodiments, multiple copies of a thioesterase (TE) encoding polynucleotide molecule are introduced into a host cell, which may be two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten or more copies of the same TE or different TE encoding polynucleotides.

When two or more exogenous nucleic acid molecules are introduced into a host C₁ metabolizing microorganism, it is understood that the two more exogenous nucleic acid molecules can be introduced as a single nucleic acid molecule (e.g., on a single vector), on separate vectors, integrated into the host chromosome at a single site or multiple sites, and each of these embodiments is still to be considered two or more exogenous nucleic acid molecules. Thus, the number of referenced heterologous nucleic acid molecules or protein activities refers to the number of encoding nucleic acid molecules or the number of protein activities, not the number of separate nucleic acid molecules introduced into a host cell.

The “percent identity” between two or more nucleic acid sequences is a function of the number of identical positions shared by the sequences (i.e., % identity=number of identical positions/total number of positions×100), taking into account the number of gaps, and the length of each gap that needs to be introduced to optimize alignment of two or more sequences. The comparison of sequences and determination of percent identity between two or more sequences can be accomplished using a mathematical algorithm, such as BLAST and Gapped BLAST programs at their default parameters (e.g., Altschul et al., J. Mol. Biol. 215:403, 1990; see also BLASTN at www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/BLAST).

A “conservative substitution” is recognized in the art as a substitution of one amino acid for another amino acid that has similar properties. Exemplary conservative substitutions are well known in the art (see, e.g., WO 97/09433, p. 10; Lehninger, Biochemistry, 2^(nd) Edition; Worth Publishers, Inc. NY:N.Y. (1975), pp. 71-77; Lewin, Genes IV, Oxford University Press, NY and Cell Press, Cambridge, Mass. (1990), p. 8).

As used herein, “overexpressed” when referring to a gene or a protein means an increase in expression or activity of the gene or protein. Increased expression or activity includes expression or activity of a gene or protein being increased above the level of a wild-type (non-genetically engineered) control or reference microorganism. A gene or protein is overexpressed if the expression or activity is in a microorganism where it is not normally expressed or active. A gene or protein is overexpressed if the expression or activity is extended or present longer in the recombinant microorganism than in a wild-type control or reference microorganism.

“Inhibit” or “inhibited,” as used herein, refers to an alteration, reduction, down regulation, abrogation or deletion, directly or indirectly, in the expression of a target gene or in the activity of a target molecule (e.g., long-chain fatty acid-CoA ligase) relative to a control, endogenous or reference molecule, wherein the alteration, reduction, down regulation or abrogation is statistically, biologically, industrially, or clinically significant.

As used herein, “biorefinery” refers to a facility that integrates biomass conversion processes and equipment to produce fuels from biomass.

As used herein, “refinery” refers to an oil refinery, or aspects thereof, at which oil compositions (e.g., biomass, biofuel, or fossil fuels such as crude oil, coal or natural gas) may be processed. Exemplary processes carried out at such refineries include cracking, transesterification, reforming, distilling, hydroprocessing, isomerization, or any combination thereof.

Biofuel Production Systems

The systems for generating biofuels of the instant disclosure may include separate units (e.g., close or adjacent to each other, or not), integrated units, or the system itself may be interconnected and partially or fully integrated. The systems of this disclosure may use biomass from a microorganism grown in an integrated biorefinery to generate fuel compositions and fuel products, particularly biofuels. In certain embodiments, a biorefinery uses a single biomass or a mixed biomass to generate fuel (e.g., diesel fuel, jet fuel, gasoline), such as a C₁ metabolizing microorganism (e.g., a methanotroph such as Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, Methylococcus capsulatus Bath, Methylomonas sp. 16a, Methylomonas methanica, Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, or a high growth variants thereof) as the biomass.

An exemplary biorefinery system is illustrated in FIG. 1. Such a system can perform one or more of the following steps: culturing a microorganism strain of interest (e.g., a methanotroph, methylotroph or yeast) which may have one or more improved properties (e.g., recombinant, higher growth rate, ability to grow in high pH, improved utilization of nutrients, temperature stability, increased biomass yield), recovering a product such as an oil composition (e.g., fatty acids, triglycerides, phospholipids, isoprenes, terpenes, PHA, or any combination thereof) from the microorganism, and refining the oil composition to produce plastic precursors or one or more fuels, such as jet fuel, diesel fuel, gasoline, or a combination thereof. Different biofuel compositions and products can be produced by the system simultaneously or in series. For example, the system can include a hydrotreating plant or unit that can convert the oil composition to jet fuel and diesel. The system can also include a petroleum refinery that can convert the crude oil and products from the hydrotreating plant to gasoline. For example, the production of jet fuel and diesel fuel can result in additional products, such as naphtha and light hydrocarbons, including propane, that are then used for generating gasoline. Exemplary light hydrocarbons include methane, ethane, propane, butane, pentane, butanol, and isobutanol. In another example, production of gasoline can result in additional products, such as diesel, which can be used for producing jet fuel.

An alternative exemplary biorefinery system is illustrated in FIG. 2. Such a system can perform one or more of the following steps: culturing a microorganism strain of interest (e.g., a methanotroph, methylotroph or yeast) which may have one or more improved properties (e.g., recombinant, higher growth rate, ability to grow in high pH, improved utilization of nutrients, temperature stability, increased biomass yield), recovering a product such as an oil composition (e.g., fatty acids, fatty acid esters, triglycerides, phospholipids, isoprenes, terpenes, PHA, or any combination thereof) from the microorganism, and modifying the oil composition to produce a biodiesel composition. For example, the system can include an esterification plant or unit that can convert the oil composition to biodiesel by reaction with an alcohol. Exemplary alcohols include methanol, ethanol, propanol, butanol, or longer chain fatty alcohols.

In some embodiments, the systems disclosed herein use bacteria, such as methylotrophs or methanotrophs, or yeast as the microorganism. The bacteria or yeast can be harvested and separated from the culture media (if not grown as, for example, a biofilm), resulting in a bacterial or yeast paste. The bacterial or yeast biomass may optionally be dried prior to obtaining an oil composition from the biomass. In certain embodiments, the bacterial or yeast biomass remains wet to some extent and need not be fully dried before the oil composition is derived, separated, or extracted. Bacterial or yeast oil compositions may be extracted from the biomass and be separated from the bacterial or yeast solids or sludge.

Extraction of an oil composition may be accomplished using various different methods or solvents (e.g., a polar solvent, a non-polar solvent, a neutral solvent, an acidic solvent, a basic solvent, hexane, or a combination thereof), such as hexane or acidic methanol or chloroform/methanol mix, in processes such as those described in more detail herein or other extraction methods known in the art.

In certain embodiments, a C₁ metabolizing microorganism (e.g., methanotroph) oil composition contained within a harvested biomass is separated from the biomass using high-shear contact with an organic solvent (e.g., hexane) and a conditioning agent. By way of background, the oil dissolves into hexane, or other similar solvents, forming a solution of miscella, whereas water and cellular solids do not dissolve and can be separated from the miscella. The immiscibility of water and hexane is used to produce the desired separation. In certain embodiments, following high-shear mixing, the oil composition/hexane/water mixture is sent to a decanter where it separates into two distinct liquids: a lighter hexane and oil composition phase (miscella), and a heavier water and spent solids phase. In still further embodiments, the miscella from the decanter is fed into a distillation process where the oil composition is separated from the solvent, which allows recovery and reuse of the solvent, and purifies the oil to a point where it is ready for downstream processing. Distillation, for example, takes advantage of the difference in boiling points of the solvent and oil to separate the two components.

In certain embodiments, an oil composition of the present disclosure is refined. Refining may include cracking, transesterification, reforming, distilling, hydroprocessing, isomerization, or a combination thereof. Optionally, refining can involve removal of contaminants. For example heteroatoms and metals can be removed by hydrotreating (e.g., hydrodenitrogenation (HDN), hydrodeoxygenation (HDO), hydrodesulfurization (HDS), hydrodemetallization (HDM)). Hydrotreatment may also be saturation of olefins, distillate hydrotreating, vacuum gas oil hydrotreating, fixed-bed residue hydrotreating, or a combination thereof. Hydrotreatment of an oil composition can produce jet fuel or diesel. The oil composition can also be refined by cracking, such as catalytic cracking to produce gasoline. Representative cracking processes may include catalytic cracking, fluid catalytic cracking, steam cracking, hydrocracking, thermal cracking, thermal catalytic cracking, or a combination thereof. The refining by hydrotreating and cracking can occur concurrently (both processes occurring) or alternatively (one or the other is occurring). The refining processes can also be subsequent to each other, for example, products produced by hydrotreatment, can then be processed by cracking. Products from one refining process (e.g., H₂) can also be further used by another refining process. The refining processes can be separate units of the system, or in the same unit. Moreover, the bacterial or yeast solids or sludge can be used to produce fuels, animal feed, or energy, such as methane released from digestion of the solids or sludge.

In certain embodiments, the instant disclosure provides a biorefinery comprising (a) a processing unit in which an oil composition is derived from a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism; and (b) a refining unit for refining the oil composition to produce a fuel. In further embodiments, the biorefinery may further comprise a controlled culturing unit for culturing a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism in the presence of a feedstock comprising a C₁ substrate, wherein the cultured bacteria produce the oil composition.

Exemplary controlled culturing units include a fermentor, a bioreactor, a hollow fiber cell, packed bed bioreactor, or the like. In further embodiments, the culture may be grown in the form of liquid-phase fermentation or solid phase fermentation. For example, bacteria, such as methylotrophs or methanotrophs, may be cultured in a bioreactor containing balanced media, or unbalanced media that has limiting quantities of phosphorus, nitrogen, trace elements, oxygen, or any combination thereof, so that certain lipids or other polymers of interest (e.g., PHAs) accumulate in the cells.

In certain embodiments, cultures include a bacterial community, including a variety of methylotrophs or methanotrophs that produce the highest levels of an oil composition of interest (i.e., high w/w ratios of lipids to biomass). A range of bioreactor configurations may be used, including sequencing membrane bioreactors and a continuous multistage dispersed growth configuration. In certain embodiments, a bioreactor is operated to select for bacteria that efficiently produce an oil composition of interest from methane, e.g., bioreactor conditions may select against bacteria that either do not produce an oil composition of interest from methane or produce such a composition inefficiently.

In further embodiments, the present disclosure provides a controlled culturing unit in which a C₁ substrate (e.g., methane or syngas) is delivered in a gas phase to microbial biofilms in solid phase fermentation. In other embodiments, balanced or unbalanced growth conditions are established in solid phase fermentation. In still other embodiments, methylotrophs or methanotrophs are grown under balanced growth conditions, harvested and separated from liquid phase, and transferred to a solid phase fermentation chamber where C₁ substrate is delivered under unbalanced conditions (e.g., nitrogen is not included) and the bacteria consume the substrate to generate an oil composition of interest.

In certain embodiments, the instant disclosure provides a biorefinery comprising (a) a controlled culturing unit for culturing a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism in the presence of a feedstock comprising a C₁ substrate, wherein the cultured bacteria produce the oil composition; (b) a processing unit in which an oil composition is derived or extracted from a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism; and (c) a refining unit for refining the oil composition to produce a fuel. In further embodiments, the feedstock C₁ substrate used in the biorefinery is methane, methanol, formaldehyde, formic acid or a salt thereof, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, syngas, a methylamine, a methylthiol, or a methylhalogen.

In further biorefinery embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a methanotroph or methylotroph, the feedstock C₁ substrate is natural gas or methane, and the bacteria are cultured under aerobic conditions. In further embodiments, the methanotroph is Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, Methylococcus capsulatus Bath, Methylomonas sp. 16a, Methylomonas methanica, Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, any combination thereof, or a high growth variant thereof, and the methylotroph is Methylobacterium extorquens, Methylobacterium radiotolerans, Methylobacterium populi, Methylobacterium chloromethanicum, Methylobacterium nodulans, any combination thereof, or a high growth variant thereof. In certain other embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is an obligate C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism, such as an obligate methanotroph or methylotroph.

In further embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a recombinant microorganism comprising a heterologous polynucleotide encoding a fatty acid producing enzyme, a formaldehyde assimilation enzyme, or a combination thereof. For example, biosynthesis of free fatty acids (FFAs), which can be used as precursors for the production of fuels or other high value chemicals, can be enhanced by introducing a thioesterase (TE) gene into a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism of this disclosure (e.g., Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, Methylococcus capsulatus Bath, Methylomonas sp. 16a, Methylomonas methanica). Biosynthesis of FFAs can also be enhanced by optionally introducing more than one TE gene, malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase (FabD, also referred to as MCT) gene, one or more genes from the acetyl-CoA carboxylase operon (AccABCD), or any combination thereof. In certain embodiments, the production of FFAs can be improved by over-expressing a malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase (FabD, also referred to as MCT) since the first committed step of fatty acid biosynthesis is the conversion of acetyl-CoA to malonyl-CoA by an adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-dependent acetyl-CoA carboxylase followed by the conversion of malonyl-CoA to malonyl-ACP through the FabD enzyme.

In further embodiments, a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a recombinant microorganism comprising a genetic modification that minimizes or reduces the degradation of fatty acids. For example, a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a recombinant microorganism comprising one or more mutations that truncate or knock-out long-chain fatty acid-CoA ligase activity encoded by one or more endogenous fadD genes.

The nucleic acid sequences encoding wild-type FadD proteins are the reference standard starting point for designing mutant fadD genes. For example, the wild-type FadD protein sequence encoded by M. trichosporium OB3b, M. capsulatus Bath, M. methanica, M. extorquens, and C. ljungdahlii are provided in GenBank Accession Nos. EFH00931.1, YP_114021.1, YP_004512148.1, YP_002964871.1, and YP_003782065.1, respectively. In certain embodiments, a nucleic acid molecule of a fadD gene encoding any one of above-noted proteins is individually modified to mutate fadD. In Example 2 herein, the fadD gene from various C₁ metabolizing microorganism were synthesized to incorporate several stop mutations and frame shifts in the 5′-region of the gene from M. trichosporium OB3b (SEQ ID NO.:1), M. methanica (SEQ ID NO.:35), M. extorquens (SEQ ID NO.:52), and C. ljungdahlii (SEQ ID NO.:85). For the M. capsulatus fadD gene, a nucleic acid molecule comprising an internal deletion was synthesized so that the remaining 5′ and 3′ ends of the gene could be joined to maintain the original reading frame (SEQ ID NO.:18).

For certain C₁ metabolizing microorganisms wherein the fadD gene sequence is not known (e.g., Clostridium autoethanogenum), the genome can be sequenced and the fadD homolog to E. coli is identified via a tblastn search (a search of the translated nucleotide gene sequences with the protein sequence of the E. coli FadD). For example, a nucleic acid molecule of the C. autoethanogenum fadD gene is synthesized to incorporate several stop mutations and frame shifts in the 5′-region of the gene.

In certain embodiments, a mutant fadD nucleic acid molecule is cloned into a plasmid expression vector (and optionally lacking a C₁ metabolizing microorganism origin of replication and encoding antibiotic resistance) for conjugation, electroporation, or transformation into a C₁ metabolizing microorganism using methods described herein. In certain embodiments, a fadD mutant incorporates into a host cell genome by homologous recombination and results in recombinant cells that lack or have minimal long-chain fatty acid-CoA ligase activity.

In certain embodiments, any one or all of the TE, MCT, and Acc genes introduced into C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of this disclosure can be over-expressed and the C₁ metabolizing microorganisms may optionally have a mutation that minimizes or eliminates fatty acid-CoA ligase activity (e.g., a fadD knock-out).

In certain embodiments, the biorefinery processing unit is capable of deriving the oil composition by a wet extraction, a supercritical fluid extraction, dry extraction, thermal extraction (e.g., steam stripping, hydrothermal liquefaction, pressure cooking), enzymatic hydrolysis (e.g., of the cell wall), pulsed electric field extraction, microbubbles, hollow fiber extraction, or the like. In further embodiments, the wet extraction comprises use of a polar solvent, a non-polar solvent, a neutral solvent, an acidic solvent, a basic solvent, hexane, or a combination thereof. In certain embodiments, an oil composition is derived or extracted from a cell membrane of the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism or may be recovered from a culture supernatant if secreted or excreted, or a combination thereof. In further embodiments, the biorefinery further comprises a second processing unit, wherein the second processing unit is a waste processing unit for processing residual matter from the refined oil composition, which includes an anaerobic digester, an aerobic digester, or both. In still further embodiments, the biorefinery further comprises a conduit for delivering at least one product from the waste processing unit for use in culturing or maintaining the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism.

In still further embodiments, the biorefinery processing unit further comprises a controlled culturing unit, wherein the controlled culturing unit is a solid phase fermentation unit in which the culturing and processing (e.g., extraction) can occur in the same unit or even the same chamber. In certain embodiments, the biorefinery combined culturing/processing unit includes supercritical fluid extraction, such as by supercritical fluid comprising CO₂, methanol, or H₂O.

In certain aspects, any of the aforementioned biorefineries are integrated.

C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms

The C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of the instant disclosure may be natural, strain adapted (e.g., performing fermentation to select for strains with improved growth rates and increased total biomass yield compared to the parent strain), or recombinantly modified to produce lipids of interest (e.g., genetically altered to express a fatty acid producing enzyme, a formaldehyde assimilation enzyme, or a combination thereof) or to have increased growth rates or both. In certain embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing microorganisms are not C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms, such as algae or plants.

In certain embodiments, the present disclosure provides C₁ metabolizing microorganisms that are prokaryotes or bacteria, such as Methylomonas, Methylobacter, Methylococcus, Methylosinus, Methylocystis, Methylomicrobium, Methanomonas, Methylophilus, Methylobacillus, Methylobacterium, Hyphomicrobium, Xanthobacter, Bacillus, Paracoccus, Nocardia, Arthrobacter, Rhodopseudomonas, or Pseudomonas.

In further embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing bacteria are a methanotroph or a methylotroph. Exemplary methanotrophs include Methylomonas, Methylobacter, Methylococcus, Methylosinus, Methylocystis, Methylomicrobium, Methanomonas, Methylocella, or a combination thereof. Exemplary methylotrophs include Methylobacterium extorquens, Methylobacterium radiotolerans, Methylobacterium populi, Methylobacterium chloromethanicum, Methylobacterium nodulans, or a combination thereof.

In certain embodiments, methanotrophic bacteria are genetically engineered with the capability to convert a C₁ substrate feedstock into an oil composition. Methanotrophic bacteria have the ability to oxidize methane as a carbon and energy source. Methanotrophic bacteria are classified into three groups based on their carbon assimilation pathways and internal membrane structure: type I (gamma proteobacteria), type II (alpha proteobacteria, and type X (gamma proteobacteria). Type I methanotrophs use the ribulose monophosphate (RuMP) pathway for carbon assimilation whereas type II methanotrophs use the serine pathway. Type X methanotrophs use the RuMP pathway but also express low levels of enzymes of the serine pathway. Methanotrophic bacteria include obligate methanotrophs, which can only utilize C₁ substrates for carbon and energy sources, and facultative methanotrophs, which naturally have the ability to utilize some multi-carbon substrates as a carbon and energy source.

Exemplary facultative methanotrophs include some species of Methylocella, Methylocystis, and Methylocapsa (e.g., Methylocella silvestris, Methylocella palustris, Methylocella tundrae, Methylocystis daltona strain SB2, Methylocystis bryophila, and Methylocapsa aurea KYG), Methylobacterium organophilum (ATCC 27,886), Methylibium petroleiphilum, or high growth variants thereof. Exemplary obligate methanotrophic bacteria include Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (NCIMB 11132), Methylomonas sp. 16a (ATCC PTA 2402), Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b (NRRL B-11,196), Methylosinus sporium (NRRL B-11,197), Methylocystis parvus (NRRL B-11,198), Methylomonas methanica (NRRL B-11,199), Methylomonas albus (NRRL B-11,200), Methylobacter capsulatus Y (NRRL B-11,201), Methylomonas flagellata sp. AJ-3670 (FERM P-2400), Methylacidiphilum infernorum and Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, or high growth variants thereof.

In still further embodiments, the present disclosure provides C₁ metabolizing microorganisms that are syngas metabolizing bacteria, such as Clostridium, Moorella, Pyrococcus, Eubacterium, Desulfobacterium, Carboxydothermus, Acetogenium, Acetobacterium, Acetoanaerobium, Butyribaceterium, Peptostreptococcus, or any combination thereof. Exemplary syngas metabolizing bacteria include Clostridium autoethanogenum, Clostridium ljungdahli, Clostridium ragsdalei, Clostridium carboxydivorans, Butyribacterium methylotrophicum, Clostridium woodii, Clostridium neopropanologen, or any combination thereof.

In certain other embodiments, C₁ metabolizing microorganisms are eukaryotes such as yeast, including Candida, Yarrowia, Hansenula, Pichia, Torulopsis, or Rhodotorula.

In certain other embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is an obligate C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism, such as an obligate methanotroph or methylotroph. In further embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a recombinant microorganism comprising a heterologous polynucleotide encoding a fatty acid producing enzyme, a formaldehyde assimilation enzyme, or a combination thereof. In certain embodiments, any one or all of the TE, MCT, and Acc genes introduced into a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure can be over-expressed and the C₁ metabolizing microorganisms may optionally have a mutation that minimizes or eliminates fatty acid-CoA ligase activity (e.g., a fadD knock-out).

Each of the microorganisms of this disclosure may be grown as an isolated culture, with a heterologous organism that may aid with growth, or one or more of these bacteria may be combined to generate a mixed culture. In still further embodiments, C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms of this disclosure are obligate C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms.

Any one of the aforementioned C₁ metabolizing microorganisms can be used as a parent or reference host cell to make a recombinant C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of this disclosure.

Codon Optimization

Expression of recombinant proteins may be difficult outside their original host. For example, variation in codon usage bias has been observed across different species of bacteria (Sharp et al., Nucl. Acids. Res. 33:1141, 2005). Over-expression of recombinant proteins even within their native host may also be difficult. In certain embodiments, nucleic acid molecules (e.g., nucleic acids encoding thioesterase, fabD, accABCD) to be introduced into a host as described herein may be subjected to codon optimization prior to introduction into the host to ensure protein expression is effective or enhanced. Codon optimization refers to alteration of codons in genes or coding regions of nucleic acids before transformation to reflect the typical codon usage of the host without altering the polypeptide encoded by the non-natural DNA molecule. Codon optimization methods for optimum gene expression in heterologous hosts have been previously described (see, e.g., Welch et al., PLoS One 4:e7002, 2009; Gustafsson et al., Trends Biotechnol. 22:346, 2004; Wu et al., Nucl. Acids Res. 35:D76, 2007; Villalobos et al., BMC Bioinformatics 7:285, 2006; U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 2011/0111413 and 2008/0292918; disclosure of which methods are incorporated herein by reference, in their entirety).

Similarly, exogenous nucleic acid molecules of this disclosure encoding polypeptide variants may be designed using the phylogenetic-based methods described in the references noted above (U.S. Pat. No. 8,005,620; Gustafsson et al.; Welch et al.; Villalobos et al.; Minshull et al.). Each variant polypeptide generated by these methods will retain at least 50% activity (preferably 100% or more activity) and have a polypeptide sequence that is at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, at least 99% identical, or 100% identical to a reference or parental wild-type polypeptide sequence. In certain embodiments, variant polypeptides will include at least one amino acid substitution (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 or more or up to 20, 25, or 30 substitutions) at a pre-determined position relative to a reference or parental wild-type enzyme, provided that a variant retains an activity of interest (e.g., thioesterase activity or fatty acid production).

In certain embodiments, an E. coli, Cinnamomum camphorum, Umbellularia californica, Streptoccus pyogenes, Ricinius communis, or Jatropha curcus thioesterase is codon optimized for expression in a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure (e.g., methanotroph, methylotroph, Clostridium). In further embodiments, any one or more of the codon optimized thioesterase sequences are introduced (e.g., transformed, conjugated, electroporated) into a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure. Exemplary codon optimized thioesterase sequences are set forth in (1) SEQ ID NOS.:3-13 for M. trichosporium OB3b; (2) SEQ ID NOS.:20-30 for M. capsulatus Bath; (3) SEQ ID NOS.:37-47 for M. methanica; (4) SEQ ID NOS.:54-64 for M. extorquens; (5) SEQ ID NOS.:70-80 for C. autoethanogenum; and (6) SEQ ID NOS.:87-97 for C. ljungdahlii.

In certain embodiments, an E. coli malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase (fabD) sequence is codon optimized for expression in a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure (e.g., methanotroph, methylotroph, Clostridium). In further embodiments, any one or more of the codon optimized fabD sequences are introduced (e.g., transformed, conjugated, electroporated) into a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure. Exemplary codon optimized fabD sequences are set forth in (1) SEQ ID NO.:2 for M. trichosporium OB3b; (2) SEQ ID NO.:19 for M. capsulatus Bath; (3) SEQ ID NO.:36 for M. methanica; (4) SEQ ID NO.:53 for M. extorquens; (5) SEQ ID NO.:69 for C. autoethanogenum; and (6) SEQ ID NO.:86 for C. ljungdahlii.

In certain embodiments, one or more acetyl-CoA carboxylase sequence (e.g., accA, accB, accC, and accD from E. coli) is codon optimized for expression in a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure (e.g., methanotroph, methylotroph, Clostridium). In further embodiments, any one or more of the codon optimized Acc sequences are introduced (e.g., transformed, conjugated, electroporated) into a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure. In other embodiments, a codon optimized accA is introduced or a codon optimized accABCD is introduced. Exemplary codon optimized accA, accB, accC, and accD sequences are set forth, respectively, in (1) SEQ ID NOS.:14-17 for M. trichosporium OB3b; (2) SEQ ID NOS.:31-34 for M. capsulatus Bath; (3) SEQ ID NOS.:48-51 for M. methanica; (4) SEQ ID NOS.:65-68 for M. extorquens; (5) SEQ ID NOS.:81-84 for C. autoethanogenum; and (6) SEQ ID NOS.:98-101 for C. ljungdahlii.

Transformation Methods

Any of the recombinant C₁ metabolizing microorganisms or methanotrophic bacteria described herein may be transformed to comprise at least one exogenous nucleic acid to provide the host with a new or enhanced activity (e.g., enzymatic activity) or may be genetically modified to remove or substantially reduce an endogenous gene function using any of a variety of methods known in the art.

Transformation refers to the introduction of a nucleic acid molecule (e.g., exogenous or heterologous nucleic acid molecule) into a host cell. The transformed host cell may carry the exogenous or heterologous nucleic acid molecule extra-chromosomally or integrated in the chromosome. Integration into a host cell genome and self-replicating vectors generally result in genetically stable inheritance of the transformed nucleic acid molecule. Host cells containing the transformed nucleic acid molecules are referred to as “non-naturally occurring” or “genetically engineered” or “recombinant” or “transformed” or “transgenic” cells (e.g., bacteria).

Expression systems and expression vectors useful for the expression of heterologous nucleic acids in C₁ metabolizing microorganisms (e.g., methanotrophic bacteria) are known.

Electroporation of C₁ metabolizing bacteria is described herein and has been previously described in, for example, Toyama et al., FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 166:1, 1998; Kim and Wood, Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 48:105, 1997; Yoshida et al., Biotechnol. Lett. 23:787, 2001, and U.S. Patent Appl. Pub. No. 2008/0026005.

Bacterial conjugation, which refers to a particular type of transformation involving direct contact of donor and recipient cells, is more frequently used for the transfer of nucleic acid molecules into C₁ metabolizing bacteria. Bacterial conjugation involves mixing “donor” and “recipient” cells together in close contact with each other. Conjugation occurs by formation of cytoplasmic connections between donor and recipient bacteria, with unidirectional transfer of newly synthesized donor nucleic acid molecules into the recipient cells. A recipient in a conjugation reaction is any cell that can accept nucleic acids through horizontal transfer from a donor bacterium. A donor in a conjugation reaction is a bacterium that contains a conjugative plasmid, conjugative transposon, or mobilized plasmid. The physical transfer of the donor plasmid can occur through a self-transmissible plasmid or with the assistance of a “helper” plasmid. Conjugations involving C₁ metabolizing bacteria is described herein and have been previously described in Stolyar et al., Mikrobiologiya 64:686, 1995; Motoyama et al., Appl. Micro. Biotech. 42:67, 1994; Lloyd et al., Arch. Microbiol. 171:364, 1999; PCT Publication No. WO 02/18617; and Ali et al., Microbiol. 152:2931, 2006.

Expression of heterologous nucleic acids in C₁ metabolizing bacteria is known in the art (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,818,424, U.S. Patent Appl. Pub. No. 2003/0003528). Mu transposon based transformation of methylotrophic bacteria has been described (Akhverdyan et al., Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 91:857, 2011). A mini-Tn7 transposon system for single and multicopy expression of heterologous genes without insertional inactivation of host genes in Methylobacterium has been described (U.S. Patent Appl. Pub. No. 2008/0026005).

Various methods for inactivating, knocking-out, or deleting endogenous gene function in C₁ metabolizing bacteria may be used. Allelic exchange using suicide vectors to construct deletion/insertion mutants in slow growing C₁ metabolizing bacteria have also been described herein and in, for example, Toyama and Lidstrom, Microbiol. 144:183, 1998; Stolyar et al., Microbiol. 145:1235, 1999; Ali et al., Microbiol. 152:2931, 2006; Van Dien et al., Microbiol. 149:601, 2003.

Suitable homologous or heterologous promoters for high expression of exogenous nucleic acid molecules may be utilized. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,098,005 describes the use of promoters that are highly expressed in the presence of methane or methanol for heterologous gene expression in C₁ metabolizing bacteria. Additional promoters that may be used include deoxy-xylulose phosphate synthase methanol dehydrogenase operon promoter (Springer et al., FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 160:119, 1998); the promoter for PHA synthesis (Foellner et al., Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 40:284, 1993); the pyruvate decarboxylase promoter (Tokuhiro et al., Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol. 131:795, 2006); or promoters identified from native plasmid in methylotrophs (EP 296484). Non-native promoters include the lac operon Plac promoter (Toyama et al., Microbiol. 143:595, 1997) or a hybrid promoter such as Ptrc (Brosius et al., Gene 27:161, 1984).

In certain embodiments, promoters or codon optimization are used for high constitutive expression of exogenous polynucleotides encoding one or more lactate production enzymes in host methanotrophic bacteria. Regulated expression of an exogenous nucleic acid in a host methanotrophic bacterium may also be utilized. In certain embodiments, regulated expression of exogenous nucleic acids encoding one or more thioesterase, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, or malonyl-CoA-ACP transacylase enzymes may be desirable to optimize lipid production by the non-naturally occurring methanotrophic bacteria. For example, an inducible/regulatable system of recombinant protein expression in methylotrophic and methanotrophic bacteria as described in, for example, U.S. Patent Appl. No. US 2010/0221813 may be used.

Recombinant C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms

As noted herein, any of the recombinant C₁ metabolizing microorganisms (e.g., methanotrophic bacteria) described herein may be used as a parent or reference host cell to make recombinant C₁ metabolizing microorganisms. In certain embodiments, the instant disclosure provides a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism, wherein the microorganism comprises a heterologous nucleic acid sequence related to fatty acid biosynthesis and wherein expression heterologous nucleic acid sequence leads to accumulation of an increased level of fatty acids or an overexpression of fatty acids in the recombinant C₁ metabolizing microorganism as compared to a parent or reference C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism.

In certain embodiments, a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism comprises a heterologous polynucleotide encoding a fatty acid producing enzyme, a formaldehyde assimilation enzyme, or any combination thereof. In further embodiments, the heterologous polynucleotide encodes a thioesterase, a malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase, an acetyl-CoA carboxylase, or any combination thereof. For example, a thioesterase may be an E. coli, Cinnamomum camphorum, Umbellularia californica, Streptoccus pyogenes, Ricinius communis, or Jatropha curcus thioesterase. Exemplary fabD, accA, accB, accC, and accD genes may be from E. coli or any other organism of choice.

In further embodiments, the recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism comprises a heterologous nucleic acid sequence codon optimized for efficient expression in the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism. In certain embodiments, any one or more of thioesterase, fabD, accA, accB, accC, and accD are codon optimized for a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism. In one embodiment, a codon optimized thioesterase is an E. coli tesA lacking a periplasmic targeting sequence.

In yet other embodiments, any of the aforementioned recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms further comprises a mutation that minimizes or eliminates fatty acid-CoA ligase activity.

Exemplary organisms for use in making recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms of this disclosure include bacteria or yeast. In certain embodiments, the parent or reference C₁ metabolizing bacteria used to make a recombinant C₁ metabolizing bacteria of this disclosure is a methanotroph or methylotroph, such as a Methylomonas sp. 16a (ATCC PTA 2402), Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b (NRRL B-11,196), Methylosinus sporium (NRRL B-11,197), Methylocystis parvus (NRRL B-11,198), Methylomonas methanica (NRRL B-11,199), Methylomonas albus (NRRL B-11,200), Methylobacter capsulatus Y (NRRL B-11,201), Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (NCIMB 11132), Methylobacterium organophilum (ATCC 27,886), Methylomonas sp. AJ-3670 (FERM P-2400), Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, Methylocella silvestris, Methylacidiphilum infernorum, Methylibium petroleiphilum, Methylobacterium extorquens, Methylobacterium radiotolerans, Methylobacterium populi, Methylobacterium chloromethanicum, Methylobacterium nodulans, or any combination thereof.

In further embodiments, a parent or reference C₁ metabolizing bacteria used to make a recombinant C₁ metabolizing bacteria of this disclosure is a syngas metabolizing bacteria, such as Clostridium autoethanogenum, Clostridium ljungdahli, Clostridium ragsdalei, Clostridium carboxydivorans, Butyribacterium methylotrophicum, Clostridium woodii, Clostridium neopropanologen, or a combination thereof.

Culture Methods and Methods of Making Oil Compositions

A variety of culture methodologies may be used for the microorganisms, bacteria and yeast described herein. For example, C₁ metabolizing microorganisms (such as methanotroph or methylotroph bacteria) may be grown by batch culture or continuous culture methodologies. In certain embodiments, the cultures are grown in a controlled culture unit, such as a fermentor, bioreactor, hollow fiber cell, or the like. Generally cells in log phase are often responsible for the bulk production of a product or intermediate of interest in some systems, whereas stationary or post-exponential phase production can be obtained in other systems.

A classical batch culturing method is a closed system in which the media composition is set when the culture is started and is not altered during the culture process. That is, media is inoculated at the beginning of the culturing process with one or more microorganisms of choice and then are allowed to grow without adding anything to the system. As used herein, a “batch” culture is in reference to not changing the amount of a particular carbon source initially added, whereas control of factors such as pH and oxygen concentration can be monitored and altered during the culture. In batch systems, metabolite and biomass compositions of the system change constantly up to the time the culture is terminated. Within batch cultures, cells (e.g., bacteria such as methylotrophs) will generally move from a static lag phase to a high growth logarithmic phase to a stationary phase where growth rate is reduced or stopped (and will eventually lead to cell death if conditions do change).

A fed-batch system is a variation on the standard batch system in which a carbon substrate of interest is added in increments as the culture progresses. Fed-batch systems are useful when cell metabolism is likely to be inhibited by catabolite repression and when it is desirable to have limited amounts of substrate in the media. Since it is difficult to measure actual substrate concentration in fed-batch systems, an estimate is made based on changes of measurable factors such as pH, dissolved oxygen, and the partial pressure of waste gases. Batch and fed-batch culturing methods are common and known in the art see, e.g., Thomas D. Brock, Biotechnology: A Textbook of Industrial Microbiology, 2^(nd) Ed. (1989) Sinauer Associates, Inc., Sunderland, Mass.; Deshpande, Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol. 36:227, 1992).

Continuous cultures are “open” systems in the sense that defined culture media is continuously added to a bioreactor while an equal amount of used (“conditioned”) media is removed simultaneously for processing. Continuous cultures generally maintain the cells at a constant high, liquid phase density where cells are primarily in logarithmic growth phase. Alternatively, continuous culture may be practiced with immobilized cells (e.g., biofilm) where carbon and nutrients are continuously added and valuable products, by-products, and waste products are continuously removed from the cell mass. Cell immobilization may be achieved with a wide range of solid supports composed of natural materials, synthetic materials, or a combination thereof.

Continuous or semi-continuous culture allows for the modulation of one or more factors that affect cell growth or end product concentration. For example, one method may maintain a limited nutrient at a fixed rate (e.g., carbon source, nitrogen) and allow all other parameters to change over time. In other embodiments, several factors affecting growth may be continuously altered while cell concentration, as measured by media turbidity, is kept constant. The goal of a continuous culture system is to maintain steady state growth conditions while balancing cell loss due to media being drawn off against the cell growth rate. Methods of modulating nutrients and growth factors for continuous culture processes and techniques for maximizing the rate of product formation are well known in the art (see Brock, 1992).

In certain embodiments, culture media includes a carbon substrate as a source of energy for a C₁ metabolizing microorganism. Suitable substrates include C₁ substrates, such as methane, methanol, formaldehyde, formic acid (formate), carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, methylated amines (methylamine, dimethylamine, trimethylamine, etc.), methylated thiols, or methyl halogens (bromomethane, chloromethane, iodomethane, dichloromethane, etc.). In certain embodiments, culture media may comprise a single C₁ substrate as the sole carbon source for a C₁ metabolizing microorganism, or may comprise a mixture of two or more C₁ substrates (mixed C₁ substrate composition) as multiple carbon sources for a C₁ metabolizing microorganism.

Additionally, some C₁ metabolizing organisms are known to utilize non-C₁ substrates, such as sugar, glucosamine or a variety of amino acids for metabolic activity. For example, some Candida species can metabolize alanine or oleic acid (Sulter et al., Arch. Microbiol. 153:485, 1990). Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 is capable of growth on a limited number of C₂, C₃, and C₄ substrates (Van Dien et al., Microbiol. 149:601, 2003). Alternatively, a C₁ metabolizing microorganism may be a recombinant variant having the ability to utilize alternative carbon substrates. Hence, it is contemplated that a carbon source in culture media may comprise a mixture of carbon substrates, with single and multi-carbon compounds, depending on the C₁ metabolizing microorganism selected.

In certain embodiments, the instant disclosure provides a method for making fuel, comprising converting biomass from a culture primarily comprising a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism into an oil composition and refining the oil composition into a fuel. In certain embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is an obligate C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism, such as an obligate methanotroph or methylotroph. In further embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a recombinant microorganism comprising a heterologous polynucleotide encoding a fatty acid producing enzyme, a formaldehyde assimilation enzyme, or a combination thereof. In certain embodiments, any one or all of the TE, MCT, and Acc genes introduced into C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of this disclosure can be over-expressed and the C₁ metabolizing microorganisms may optionally have a mutation that minimizes or eliminates fatty acid-CoA ligase activity (e.g., a fadD knock-out). In further embodiments, the oil composition is derived or extracted from a cell membrane of the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism (e.g., methylotroph, methanotroph, yeast) or may be recovered from a culture supernatant if secreted or excreted, or a combination thereof.

In further embodiments, the step of converting biomass into an oil composition comprises extracting the oil composition, such as by wet extraction, supercritical fluid extraction, dry extraction, thermal extraction (e.g., steam stripping, hydrothermal liquefaction, pressure cooking), enzymatic hydrolysis (e.g., of the cell wall), pulsed electric field extraction, microbubbles, hollow fiber extraction, or the like. Exemplary extraction methods are known in the art, such as the Folch chloroform:methanol (2:1 v/v) (CM solution) method (see Folch et al., J. Biol. Chem. 226:497, 1957), or a modified method thereof (see Example 3); the Hara and Radin hexane:isopropanol (HIP) extraction method (see Hara and Radin, Anal. Biochem. 90:420, 1978); the Bligh and Dyer chloroform:methanol:water method (see Bligh and Dyer, Canadian J. Biochem. Physiol. 37:911, 1959); or the like. Other exemplary extraction methods include solid phase extraction columns (Pinkart et al., J. Microbiol. Meth. 34:9, 1998), single step reactive extraction (Nelson, All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. Paper 642, digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/642), an α-hydroxysulfonic acid extraction (U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2013/0144078), high temperature and pressure extraction (U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2012/0110898), or accelerated solvent extraction (ASE), soxhlet, ultrasonic extraction and oscillator extraction methods (see Liu et al., J. Earth Sci. 21:300, 2010). Each of these extraction methods are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, and can be used in any of the aforementioned methods or biorefinery systems described herein.

In certain embodiments, the instant disclosure provides a method for making fuel by refining an oil composition (e.g., in a refining unit) to produce fuel, wherein the oil composition is derived from a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism, such as a methylotroph or methanotroph. In further embodiments, the method further comprises extracting the oil composition or use of a processing unit for extracting the oil composition from the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism. In still further embodiments, the method comprises (a) culturing C₁ metabolizing bacteria in the presence of a feedstock comprising a C₁ substrate in a controlled culturing unit, wherein the cultured bacteria produce an oil composition; (b) extracting the oil composition from the cultured bacteria or extracting the oil composition in a processing unit; and (c) refining the extracted oil composition or refining the oil composition in a refining unit to produce fuel. In certain embodiments, the feedstock C₁ substrate is methane, methanol, formaldehyde, formic acid, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, a methylamine, a methylthiol, or a methylhalogen.

In any of the aforementioned methods of making fuel or biofuel, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a methanotroph, methylotroph or Clostridium, the feedstock C₁ substrate is natural gas, syngas or methane, and the bacteria are cultured under aerobic or anaerobic conditions. In further embodiments, the methanotroph is Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, Methylococcus capsulatus Bath, Methylomonas sp. 16a, Methylomonas methanica, Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, any combination thereof, or a high growth variant thereof; the methylotroph is Methylobacterium extorquens, Methylobacterium radiotolerans, Methylobacterium populi, Methylobacterium chloromethanicum, Methylobacterium nodulans, any combination thereof, or a high growth variant thereof; and the Clostridium is Clostridium autoethanogenum, Clostridium ljungdahli, Clostridium ragsdalei, Clostridium carboxydivorans, Clostridium woodii, Clostridium neopropanologen, or any combination thereof, or a high growth variant thereof. In certain other embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is an obligate C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism, such as an obligate methanotroph, methylotroph or Clostridium.

In any of the aforementioned methods of making fuel or biofuel, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a methanotroph, the feedstock C₁ substrate is natural gas or methane, and the bacteria are cultured under aerobic conditions. In further embodiments, the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism is a methanotroph, the C₁ substrate is natural gas or methane, and the bacteria are cultured with limiting quantities of phosphorus, nitrogen, trace elements, oxygen, or any combination thereof.

Fuel Compositions and Fuel Products

By way of background, stable isotopic measurements and mass balance approaches are widely used to evaluate global sources and sinks of methane (see Whiticar and Faber, Org. Geochem. 10:759, 1986; Whiticar, Org. Geochem. 16: 531, 1990). To use δ¹³C values of residual methane to determine the amount oxidized, it is necessary to know the degree of isotopic fractionation caused by microbial oxidation of methane. For example, aerobic methanotrophs can metabolize methane through a specific enzyme, methane monoxygenase (MMO). Methanotrophs convert methane to methanol and subsequently formaldehyde. Formaldehyde can be further oxidized to CO₂ to provide energy to the cell in the form of reducing equivalents (NADH), or incorporated into biomass through either the RuMP or Serine cycles (Hanson and Hanson, Microbiol. Rev. 60:439, 1996), which are directly analogous to carbon assimilation pathways in photosynthetic organisms. More specifically, a Type I methanotroph uses the RuMP pathway for biomass synthesis and generates biomass entirely from CH₄, whereas a Type II methanotroph uses the serine pathway that assimilates 50-70% of the cell carbon from CH₄ and 30-50% from CO₂ (Hanson and Hanson, 1996). Methods for measuring carbon isotope compositions are provided in, for example, Templeton et al. (Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 70:1739, 2006), which methods are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. The ¹³C/¹²C stable carbon ratio of an oil composition from a biomass (provided as a “delta” value ‰, δ¹³C) can vary depending on the source and purity of the C₁ substrate used (see, e.g., FIG. 7).

Oil compositions produced using the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms and methods described herein, as well as biofuel compositions derived therefrom, may be distinguished from oil and fuels produced from petrochemicals or from photosynthetic microorganisms or plants by carbon fingerprinting. In certain embodiments, a biomass, an oil composition, or a biofuel derived from the biomass or oil composition has a δ¹³C of less than −30‰, less than −31‰, less than −32‰, less than −33‰, less than −34‰, less than −35‰, less than −36‰, less than −37‰, less than −38‰, less than −39‰, less than −40‰, less than −41‰, less than −42‰, less than −43‰, less than −44‰, less than −45‰, less than −46‰, less than −47‰, less than −48‰, less than −49‰, less than −50‰, less than −51‰, less than −52‰, less than −53‰, less than −54‰, less than −55‰, less than −56‰, less than −57‰, less than −58‰, less than −59‰, less than −60‰, less than −61‰, less than −62‰, less than −63‰, less than −64‰, less than −65‰, less than −66‰, less than −67‰, less than −68‰, less than −69‰, or less than −70‰.

In certain embodiments, a C₁ metabolizing microorganism biomass comprises an oil composition, wherein the biomass has a δ¹³C of about −35‰ to about −50‰, −45‰ to about −35‰, or about −50‰ to about −40‰, or about −45‰ to about −65‰, or about −60‰ to about −70‰, or about −30‰ to about −70‰. In further embodiments, the biomass oil composition comprises at least 50% fatty acids or comprises at least 50% free fatty acids. In still further embodiments, the biomass oil composition comprises a mixture of diacylglycerides and triacylglycerides. In yet further embodiments, the biomass oil composition comprises a majority (more than 50% w/w) of fatty acids having carbon chain lengths ranging from C14 to C18 or from C16 to C18, or a majority of fatty acids having carbon chain lengths of less than C16. In further embodiments, the biomass oil composition comprises more than 50% w/w terpenoid or isoprenoid compounds, wherein the terpenoid may be farnesene or limonene.

In further embodiments, a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism biomass has a δ¹³C of less than about −30‰, or ranges from about −40‰ to about −60‰. In certain embodiments, the biomass comprises a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism together with the spent media, or the biomass comprises a spent media supernatant composition from a culture of a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism, wherein the δ¹³C of the biomass is less than about −30‰. In certain other embodiments, the an oil composition is extracted or concentrated from a biomass, which can comprise recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms together with the spent media from a culture, or a spent media supernatant composition from a culture of a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism.

In certain embodiments, biomass is of a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism comprises a heterologous polynucleotide encoding a fatty acid producing enzyme, a formaldehyde assimilation enzyme, or any combination thereof. In further embodiments, the heterologous polynucleotide encodes a thioesterase, a malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase, an acetyl-CoA carboxylase, or any combination thereof. For example, a thioesterase may be an E. coli, Cinnamomum camphorum, Umbellularia californica, Streptoccus pyogenes, Ricinius communis, or Jatropha curcus thioesterase. Exemplary fabD, accA, accB, accC, and accD genes may be from E. coli or any other organism of choice.

In further embodiments, biomass is of a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism comprising a heterologous nucleic acid sequence codon optimized for efficient expression in the C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism. In certain embodiments, any one or more of thioesterase, fabD, accA, accB, accC, and accD are codon optimized for a C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism. In one embodiment, a codon optimized thioesterase is an E. coli tesA lacking a periplasmic targeting sequence.

In yet other embodiments, any of the aforementioned biomass is of a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganism further comprises a mutation that minimizes or eliminates fatty acid-CoA ligase activity.

Exemplary organisms for use in generating biomass is of a recombinant C₁ metabolizing non-photosynthetic microorganisms of this disclosure include bacteria or yeast. In certain embodiments, biomass is of a C₁ metabolizing bacteria from a methanotroph or methylotroph, such as a Methylomonas sp. 16a (ATCC PTA 2402), Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b (NRRL B-11,196), Methylosinus sporium (NRRL B-11,197), Methylocystis parvus (NRRL B-11,198), Methylomonas methanica (NRRL B-11,199), Methylomonas albus (NRRL B-11,200), Methylobacter capsulatus Y (NRRL B-11,201), Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (NCIMB 11132), Methylobacterium organophilum (ATCC 27,886), Methylomonas sp. AJ-3670 (FERM P-2400), Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, Methylocella silvestris, Methylacidiphilum infernorum, Methylibium petroleiphilum, Methylobacterium extorquens, Methylobacterium radiotolerans, Methylobacterium populi, Methylobacterium chloromethanicum, Methylobacterium nodulans, or any combination thereof.

In further embodiments, biomass is of a C₁ metabolizing bacteria from a recombinant C₁ metabolizing bacteria of this disclosure is a syngas metabolizing bacteria, such as Clostridium autoethanogenum, Clostridium ljungdahli, Clostridium ragsdalei, Clostridium carboxydivorans, Butyribacterium methylotrophicum, Clostridium woodii, Clostridium neopropanologen, or a combination thereof.

In certain embodiments, an oil composition has a δ¹³C of about −35‰ to about −50‰, −45‰ to about −35‰, or about −50‰ to about −40‰, or about −45‰ to about −65‰, or about −60‰ to about −70‰, or about −30‰ to about −70‰. In further embodiments, an oil composition comprises at least 50% w/w fatty acids or comprises at least 50% w/w free fatty acids. In still further embodiments, an oil composition comprises a mixture of diacylglycerides and triacylglycerides. In yet further embodiments, an oil composition comprises a majority of fatty acids having carbon chain lengths ranging from C14 to C18 or from C16 to C18, or a majority of fatty acids having carbon chain lengths of less than C16. In further embodiments, an oil composition comprises more than 50% w/w terpenoid or isoprenoid compounds, wherein the terpenoid compounds may be farnesene, limonene, or both.

In certain embodiments, a biofuel derived from a biomass or an oil composition has a δ¹³C of about −35‰ to about −50‰, −45‰ to about −35‰, or about −50‰ to about −40‰, or about −45‰ to about −65‰, or about −60‰ to about −70‰, or about −30‰ to about −70‰. In certain other embodiments, a biofuel derived from an oil composition has a δ¹³C of about −35‰ to about −50‰, −45‰ to about −35‰, or about −50‰ to about −40‰, or about −45‰ to about −65‰, or about −60‰ to about −70‰, or about −30‰ to about −70‰.

In further embodiments, a biofuel comprises at least 50% w/w fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs). In related embodiments, a biofuel comprises at least 50% FAMEs, wherein the majority of FAMEs have carbon chain lengths of C14-C18, C16-C18, or less than C16. In still further embodiments, a biofuel comprises at least 50% w/w fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs). In related embodiments, a biofuel comprises at least 50% FAEEs, wherein the majority of FAEEs have carbon chain lengths of C14-C18, C16-C18, or less than C16. In yet further embodiments, a biofuel comprises at least 50% w/w hydrogenated terpenoids, such as famesane or limonane. In certain embodiments, the majority of hydrogenated terpenoids are comprised of farnesane, limonane, or both. In certain embodiments, a biofuel comprises a hydrogenated biomass. In certain embodiments, the majority of the hydrogenated biomass comprises a mixture of linear and branched alkanes. In certain embodiments, a biofuel comprises a majority of fatty acids having carbon chain lengths ranging from C14 to C18 or from C16 to C18, or a majority of fatty acids having carbon chain lengths of less than C16. In further embodiments, a biofuel comprises more than 50% w/w terpenoid or isoprenoid compounds, wherein the terpenoid may be farnesene or limonene.

In certain embodiments, an oil composition of a C₁ metabolizing microorganism (which may optionally be an extract or isolate from the C₁ metabolizing microorganism biomass) comprises hydrogen and carbon atoms of at least about 50% to about 80% of the weight of the composition, and wherein the δ¹³C of the composition is less than about −35‰ or less than about −36‰ or less than about −37‰ or less than about −38‰ or less than about −39‰ or less than about −40‰. In certain embodiments, an oil or biofuel composition derived therefrom comprises molecules having hydrogen and carbon atoms, wherein the hydrogen and carbon atoms are at least 50%, at least 55%, at least 60%, at least 65%, at least 70%, at least 75%, or at least 80%, or at least 90%, or at least 95% of the weight of the composition and wherein the δ¹³C of the composition ranges from about −30‰ to about −70‰, or wherein the δ¹³C in the biomass decreases as cell density increases by about −5‰ to about −20‰, or wherein the δ¹³C of the biomass was higher than CO₂ produced at the same time by an average of 5‰ to 15‰ when cultured in the presence or absence of copper.

In further embodiments, an oil composition of a C₁ metabolizing microorganism of this disclosure (which may optionally be extracted or isolated from the C₁ metabolizing microorganism biomass) comprises hydrogen and carbon atoms at about at least 85%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% of the weight of the composition. In certain embodiments, an oil composition or a biofuel composition derived therefrom comprises molecules having hydrogen and carbon atoms, wherein the hydrogen and carbon atoms are at least about 90% of the weight of the composition and wherein the δ¹³C of the composition ranges from about −40‰ to about −55‰.

A fuel component, as described herein and known in the art, can be a fossil fuel or a mixing blend for generating a fuel product. For example, a mixture for fuel or biofuel blending may be a hydrocarbon mixture that is suitable for blending with another hydrocarbon mixture to generate a fuel or biofuel product. For example, a mixture of light alkanes may not have a certain octane number to be suitable for a type of fuel; however, it can be blended with a high octane mixture to generate a fuel product. In certain embodiments, a biomass, an oil composition or biofuel derived therefrom of this disclosure is a fuel or biofuel component after being refined.

In certain embodiments, a biofuel composition comprises molecules having hydrogen and carbon atoms, wherein the hydrogen and carbon atoms are at least 80% of the weight of the composition and wherein the δ¹³C distribution of the composition ranges from about −37‰ to about −10‰, or wherein the δ¹³C distribution in the biomass increases as cell density increases from −22‰ to −9‰, or wherein the δ¹³C composition of the biomass was higher than CO₂ produced at the same time by an average of 5‰ to 15‰ when cultured in the presence or absence of copper.

A biofuel product as described herein is a product generated by blending an oil composition or a biofuel composition derived therefrom of the instant disclosure with a fuel or biofuel component. In some instances, a biofuel product has a δ¹³C distribution of greater than −60‰ or greater than −50‰ or greater than −40‰ or greater than −30‰, provided the oil composition or biofuel composition derived therefrom portion of the blend is not derived from a photosynthetic microorganism or a plant. In certain embodiments, the fuel component used for blending is a petroleum-based composition or a fuel additive (e.g., oxygenates like methanol, ethanol, isopropanol; ethers such as methyl tert-butyl ether, tertiary amyl methyl ether; antioxidants such as butylated hydroxytoluene, ethylene diamine; anti-knock agents such as tetraethyllead, ferrocene toluene; lead scavengers such as tricresyl phosphate; dyes; or the like). For example, an oil composition of a C₁ metabolizing microorganism can be blended with a fuel component prior to refining (e.g., transesterification; cracking) in order to generate a fuel product as described herein. In still other embodiments, an oil composition is a liquid or a solid, and is refined into a fuel additive for use in producing a biofuel product. In certain embodiments, an oil composition comprises a terpene, terpenoid, isoprene, or an isopreniod. In still other embodiments, a biofuel product has an octane number of 85-120 or an octane number greater than 90.

EXAMPLES Example 1 Culture and Bioreactor Conditions for Lipid Production by C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms

Exemplary C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of the instant disclosure (methanotrophs, methylotrophs, clostridia) were cultured in tubes, in vials, in bottles, on plates, or in a bioreactor (fermentation). Growth conditions, media, and carbon source for various microorganisms are described in this example.

Methylosinus trichosporium Strain OB3b (NCIMB 11131); Methylomonas sp. Strain 16a (ATCC PTA-2402); or Methylomonas methanica

For serum bottles, the bacteria were cultured at 30° C. in Higgins minimal nitrate salts medium (NSM; Cornish et al., J. Gen. Microbiol. 130:2565, 1984; Park et al., Biotechnol. Bioeng. 38:423, 1991) or MM-W1 medium. The headspace composition was adjusted to a 1:1 volume of methane:air. The bottles were shaken at a rate of 200-250 rpm. Alternatively, the culture was maintained on NSM-media plates containing 1.5% w/v agar grown in a gas-tight chamber containing a 1:1 (v/v) methane:air gas mixture, or in the presence of methanol vapor (via 0.5 mL methanol in the lid of parafilm-sealed plates) or on NSM-media plates supplemented with 0.5% methanol. Plates were incubated inverted in a humidified chamber at 30° C.

The composition of the NSM medium used was as follows: 1.0 g MgSO₄*7H₂O, 0.20 g CaCl₂*6H₂O, 2.0 ml chelated iron solution (0.1 g ferric (III) ammonium citrate or 0.5 g ferric (III) chloride; 0.2 g EDTA, sodium salt; 0.3 ml HCl, concentrated; 100.0 ml distilled deionized H₂O), 1.0 g KNO₃, 0.5 ml trace element solution (500.0 mg EDTA, 200.0 mg FeSO₄.7H₂O, 10.0 mg ZnSO₄*7H₂O, 3.0 mg MnCl₂*4H₂O, 30.0 mg H₃BO₃, 20.0 mg CoCl₂*6H₂O, 1.0 mg CaCl₂*2H₂O, 2.0 mg NiCl₂*6H₂O, 3.0 mg Na₂MoO₄*2H₂O, 1.0 L distilled water), 0.272 g KH₂PO₄, 0.717 g Na₂HPO₄*12H₂O, optionally 12.5 g purified agar (e.g., Oxoid L28 or Bacto™ agar; used when making plates), 1.0 L distilled deionized water, pH adjusted to 6.8 and autoclaved at 121° C. for 15 minutes.

For fermentation, a 2-liter bioreactor containing 1 L of sterilized defined media MM-W1 was inoculated with cells from serum bottle batch cultures (10-20% v/v) grown in MM-W1 supplied with a 1:1 (v/v) mixture of methane and air. The composition of medium MM-W1 used was as follows: 0.8 mM MgSO₄*7H₂O, 10 mM NaNO₃, 0.14 mM CaCl₂, 1.2 mM NaHCO₃, 2.35 mM KH₂PO₄, 3.4 mM K₂HPO₄, 20.7 μM Na₂MoO₄*2H₂O, 1 μM CuSO₄*5H₂O, 10 μM Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA, and 1 mL per liter of trace metals solution (containing, per liter 500 mg FeSO₄*7H₂O, 400 mg ZnSO₄*7H₂O, 20 mg MnCl₂*7H₂O, 50 mg CoCl₂*6H₂O, 10 mg NiCl₂*6H₂O, 15 mg H₃BO₃, 250 mg EDTA). Phosphate, bicarbonate, and Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA were added after the media was autoclaved and cooled. Bicarbonate was added up to 0.1% (w/v) in certain fermentations. The reactor contents were stirred with an overhead impeller at a constant 750 rpm. The culture was fed with a constant methane sparging at about 60 mL/min to about 120 mL/min, while concentrated oxygen (at least 85%) was supplied at a variable rate of about 10-100 mL/min to maintain a dissolved oxygen level of about 40% to about 80% (relative to air saturation of the media).

Temperature in the bioreactor was maintained at 30° C. and pH was maintained at 7.1±0.1 using automated addition of 0.5M NaOH and 0.5M HCl, along with other additions, to the culture about every 4 hours to about 24 hours (corresponding to an OD₆₀₀ increase of approximately 5 OD units). The other additions alternated between a metal addition (10 μM CuSO4, 5 μM FeSO4, 5 μM Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA final concentrations) and a nutrient addition (5.75 mM KxHyPO4, 10 mM NaNO3). Under these conditions, essentially linear growth was observed, with an effective biomass generation rate of about 2.7 to about 3.3 grams dry cell weight per liter per day to an OD₆₀₀ of greater than 20. Culture biomass was harvested by centrifugation, washed once in MM-W1 media, and recovered biomass was either frozen at −80° C. or used immediately for fractionation of cellular components (e.g., lipid extraction).

A semi-continuous fermentation approach can also be applied to maintain biomass productivity and reduce time associated with fermentation shut-down and start-up (i.e., turn-around time or lead time).

Harvesting of the bacterial biomass was performed at approximately 12-24 hour intervals, as the culture density approached (but before entering) stationary phase. Approximately half of the bioreactor volume was removed by transferring to a separate container via centrifugal pump. An equal volume of sterilized or recycled media was then returned to the bioreactor such that the optical density of the reactor was approximately half of its initial value. The bioreactor fermentation was continued according to the above protocol so that multiple cycles of growth and biomass recovery could be carried out during a single fermentation run.

Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (NCIMB 11132)

The bacteria were cultured at 42° C. in serum bottles containing Higgins minimal nitrate salts medium (NSM) or MM-W1 medium. The headspace composition was adjusted to a 1:1 volume of methane:air. The bottles were shaken at a rate of 200-250 rpm. Alternatively, the culture was maintained on NSM-media plates solidified with 1.5% w/v agar grown in a gas-tight chamber containing a 1:1 (v/v) methane:air gas mixture. Plates were incubated inverted in the chamber at 42° C.

For fermentation, a 3-liter bioreactor containing 1.25 L sterilized media MMF1.1 was inoculated with cells from serum bottle batch cultures (10-20% v/v) grown in the same media supplied with a 1:1 (v/v) mixture of methane and air. The composition of medium MMF1.1 was as follows: 0.8 mM MgSO₄*7H₂O, 40 mM NaNO₃, 0.14 mM CaCl₂, 6 mM NaHCO₃, 4.7 mM KH₂PO₄, 6.8 mM K₂HPO₄, 20.7 μM Na2MoO₄*2H₂O, 6 μM CuSO₄*5H₂O, 10 μM Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA, and 1 mL per liter of trace metals solution (containing, per liter 500 mg FeSO₄*7H₂O, 400 mg ZnSO₄*7H₂O, 20 mg MnCl₂*7H₂O, 50 mg CoCl₂*6H₂O, 10 mg NiCl₂*6H₂O, 15 mg H₃BO₃, 250 mg EDTA). Phosphate, bicarbonate, and Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA were added after media was autoclaved and cooled. The reactor contents were stirred with an overhead impeller at a constant 750 rpm. The culture was fed with a constant methane sparging at about 60 to about 200 mL/min, while concentrated oxygen (>85%) was supplied at a variable rate of 15-90 mL/min and the dissolved oxygen level was maintained below 10% (relative to air saturation of the media).

Temperature in the bioreactor was maintained at 44° C. and pH was maintained at 7.0±0.1 using automated addition of 0.5M NaOH and 0.5M HCl, along with additions of copper and iron (5 μM CuSO4, 5 μM FeSO₄, 10 μM Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA final concentration) to the culture every 3-6 hours (corresponding to an OD₆₀₀ increase of approximately 3-5 OD units after reaching OD 5). Under these conditions, essentially linear growth was observed, with effective biomass generation rate of more than 5 grams dry cell weight per liter per day to an OD₆₀₀ of greater than 10. Culture biomass was harvested by centrifugation, the cells washed once in MM-W1 media and cell pellets were either frozen at −80° C. or used immediately for fractionation of cellular components.

Nutrient depletion was recognized as an issue that could limit the growth yield during fermentation. To avoid limitation of nutrients, mainly nitrogen and phosphate, nutrient feeds composed of 2-fold concentrated MMF1.1 were initiated after culture OD₆₀₀ exceeded 5. The nutrient feed was initiated at dilution rates corresponding to approximately half of the cultures' growth rate to avoid wash-out and to maintain an increase in OD while expanding the culture volume. The bioreactor fermentation was continued according to the above protocol so that multiple cycles of growth and biomass recovery could be carried out during a single fermentation run.

Methylobacterium extorquens or Methylosinus trichosporium Strain OB3b (NCIMB 11131)

The bacteria is cultured at 30° C. in tubes containing Higgins minimal nitrate salts medium (NSM) supplemented with 0.5% methanol. The tubes are shaken at a rate of 200-250 rpm. Alternatively, the cultures are maintained on NSM-media plates containing 1.5% w/v agar grown in the presence of methanol vapor (via 0.5 mL methanol in the lid of parafilm-sealed plates) or supplemented with 0.5% methanol. Plates are incubated inverted in a humidified chamber under normal atmosphere at 30° C.

For fermentation, a 2-liter bioreactor containing 1 L defined media MM-W1 is inoculated with cells from culture tube batch culture (10-20% v/v). The composition of medium MM-W1 was as described above. The reactor contents are stirred with an overhead impeller at a constant 800 rpm. The culture is fed with an initial bolus of methanol to a final concentration of 0.5% and variable methanol feed, while pure oxygen was supplied at a variable rate of 30-100 mL/min to maintain a dissolved oxygen level of 60-90% (relative to air saturation of the media).

Temperature in the bioreactor was maintained at 30° C. and pH was maintained at 7.1±0.1 using automated addition of 0.5M NaOH and 1M HCl, along with the metal and nutrient additions as described above. Under these conditions, essentially linear growth is observed, with effective biomass generation rate 2.7 to 3.3 grams dry cell weight per liter per day to an OD₆₀₀ of greater than 20. Culture biomass was harvested by centrifugation, the cells washed once in MM-W1 media and cell pellets were either frozen at −80° C. or used immediately for fractionation of cellular components.

A semi-continuous fermentation approach can also be applied to maintain biomass productivity and reduce time associated with fermentation shut-down and start-up (i.e., turn-around time or lead time).

Harvesting of the accumulated bacterial biomass was performed at approximately 12-24 hour intervals, as the culture density approached (but before entering) stationary phase. Approximately half of the bioreactor volume was removed by transferring to a separate container via centrifugal pump. An equal volume of fresh or recycled media was then returned to the bioreactor such that the optical density of the reactor was approximately half of its initial value. The bioreactor fermentation was continued according to the above protocol so that multiple cycles of growth and biomass recovery was carried out during a single fermentation run.

Clostridium autoethanogenum and Clostridium ljungdahlii

The Clostridium bacteria are cultivated anaerobically in 100 mL modified PETC medium (ATCC medium 1754) at 37° C. in plastic-coated 500 ml-Schott Duran® GL45 bottles with butyl rubber stoppers and 200 kPa steel mill waste gas. Growth is monitored by measuring the optical density at 600 nm (OD₆₀₀).

The modified PETC medium contains (per liter) 1 g NH₄Cl, 0.4 g KCl, 0.2 g MgSO₄*7H₂O, 0.8 g NaCl, 0.1 g KH₂PO₄, 20 mg CaCl₂*2H₂O, 10 ml trace elements solution (see below), 10 ml Wolfe's vitamin solution (see below), 2 g NaHCO₃, and 1 mg resazurin. After the pH is adjusted to 5.6, the medium is boiled, dispensed anaerobically, and autoclaved at 121° C. for 15 min. Steel mill waste gas (composition: 44% CO, 32% N₂, 22% CO₂, 2% H₂) or equivalent synthetic mixtures are used as a carbon source. The media has a final pH of 5.9 and is reduced with cysteine-HCl and Na₂S at a concentration of 0.008% (w/v).

The trace elements solution contains 2 g nitrilotriacetic acid (adjusted to pH 6 with KOH before addition of the remaining ingredients), 1 g MnSO₄, 0.8 g Fe(SO₄)₂(NH₄)₂*6H₂O, 0.2 g CoCl₂*6H₂O, 0.2 mg ZnSO₄*7H₂O, 20 mg CuCl₂*2H₂O, 20 mg NiCl₂*6H₂O, 20 mg Na₂MoO₄*2H₂O, 20 mg Na₂SeO₄, and 20 mg Na₂WO₄ per liter.

Wolfe's vitamin solution (Wolin et al., J. Biol. Chem. 238:2882, 1963) contains (per liter) 2 mg biotin, 2 mg folic acid, 10 mg pyridoxine hydrochloride, 5 mg thiamine-HCl, 5 mg riboflavin, 5 mg nicotinic acid, 5 mg calcium D-(+)-pantothenate, 0.1 mg vitamin B12, 5 mg p-aminobenzoic acid, and 5 mg thioctic acid.

a. Clostridium autoethanogenum Fermentation

Fermentation of Clostridium autoethanogenum is conducted using methods similar to those described in, for example, U.S. Patent Appl. No. 2011/0300593. Briefly, a 2-liter bioreactor containing 1.3 L Solution A (3.083 g NH₄Ac; 0.61 g MgCl₂*6H₂O; 0.294 g CaCl₂*2H₂O; 0.15 g KCl; 0.12 g NaCl (optional); up to 1 L with distilled water) is sparged with N₂ gas. An 85% solution of H₃PO₄ (2.025 mL, 30 mM) is added and the pH adjusted to 5.3 using concentrated, aqueous NH₄OH. Then 13.5 mL Solution B (20.0 mg Biotin; 20.0 mg Folic acid; 10.0 mg pyridoxine HCl; 50.0 mg thiamine*HCl; 50.0 mg Riboflavin; 50.0 mg nicotinic acid; 50.0 mg calcium D-(*)-pantothenate; 50.0 mg vitamin B12; 50.0 mg p-aminobenzoic acid; 50.0 mg thioctic acid; up to 1 L with distilled water) is added and the solution sparged with N₂ gas. Chromium (II) chloride is added until the oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) of the solution decreases to approximately −200 mV, wherein resazurin (1.35 mL of a 2 g/L solution) is added. Sodium polysulfide (5.4 mL of a 3M solution, see below) is added and the solution sparged with N₂ and then CO containing gas (1% H₂; 13% N₂; 71% CO; 15% CO₂). A metal sulfide solution (150 mL, see below) is added and the solution sparged a further 30 minutes, before inoculation with an actively growing C. autoethanogenum culture at a level of approximately 5% (v/v).

The sodium polysulfide solution is prepared in a 500 ml flask that is charged with Na₂S (93.7 g, 0.39 mol) and 200 ml H₂O. The solution is stirred until the salt dissolves and sulfur (25 g, 0.1 mol) is added under constant N₂ flow. After stirring at room temperature for 2 hours, the sodium polysulfide solution (about 4 M with respect to Na and about 5 M with respect to sulfur), now a clear reddish brown liquid, is transferred into N₂ purged serum bottles, and wrapped in aluminum foil.

The chromium (II) solution is prepared in a 1 L three necked flask that is fitted with a gas tight inlet and outlet to allow working under inert gas and subsequent transfer of the desired product into a suitable storage flask. The flask is charged with CrCl₃*6H₂O (40 g, 0.15 mol), zinc granules [20 mesh] (18.3 g, 0.28 mol), mercury (13.55 g, 1 mL, 0.0676 mol) and 500 mL distilled water. Following flushing with N₂ for one hour, the mixture is warmed to about 80° C. to initiate the reaction. Following two hours of stirring under a constant N₂ flow, the mixture is cooled to room temperature and continuously stirred for another 48 hours by which time the reaction mixture turns into a deep blue solution. The solution is transferred into N₂ purged serum bottles and stored at 4° C. for future use.

The metal sulfide solution is prepared by adding about 950 mL Solution A into a 1 L fermenter and sparging with N₂ gas. An 85% solution of H₃PO₄ (1.5 mL, 30 mM) is added and the pH adjusted to 5.3 using concentrated aqueous NH₄OH. Solution B (10 mL) is added and the solution sparged with N₂. Chromium (II) chloride is added until the oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) of the solution decreases to approximately −200 mV, wherein resazurin (1 mL of a 2 g/L solution) is added. Solution C (1/10; 10 ml FeCl₃; 5 ml CoCl₂; 5 ml NiCl₂; 1 ml H₃BO₃; 1 ml Na₂MoO₄; 1 ml MnCl₂; 1 ml Na₂WO₄; 1 ml ZnCl₂; 1 ml Na₂SeO₃; into 1 L media) is added, then sodium polysulfide (2 mL of a 3M solution) is added, and then the solution is sparged with N₂ gas.

Fermentation of a substrate comprising CO by C. autoethanogenum under batch conditions in the presence of polysulfide results in a substantially increased rate of accumulation and a final biomass accumulation of approximately 4 g/L over a 2-3 day period. For example, following a short lag phase of approximately 1 day, the biomass can increase from about 0.5 g/L up to at least 3.5 g/L over approximately 36 hours of fermentation. Furthermore, acetate is not produced during the growth phase in the presence of polysulfide (as is typically found in batch fermentations) and in certain circumstances some of the acetate is consumed, such that there is a net decrease in the amount of acetate in the fermenter. Culture biomass was harvested by centrifugation, the cells washed once in media and cell pellets were either frozen at −80° C. or used immediately for fractionation of cellular components.

A semi-continuous fermentation approach can also be applied to maintain biomass productivity and reduce time associated with fermentation shut-down and start-up (i.e., turn-around time or lead time).

Harvesting of the accumulated bacterial biomass was performed at approximately 12-24 hour intervals, as the culture density approached (but before entering) stationary phase. Approximately half of the bioreactor volume was removed by transferring to a separate container via centrifugal pump. An equal volume of fresh or recycled media was then returned to the bioreactor such that the optical density of the reactor was approximately half of its initial value. The bioreactor fermentation was continued according to the above protocol so that multiple cycles of growth and biomass recovery was carried out during a single fermentation run.

b. Clostridium ljungdahlii Fermentation

Fermentation of Clostridium ljungdahlii is performed using similar methods to those described in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,173,429 and 5,593,886. Briefly, batch fermentations are conducted using a biologically pure culture of C. ljungdahlii. Preparation of the medium ((1) 80.0 mL of a salt comprising KH₂PO₄ 3.00 g/L, K₂HPO₄ 3.00 g/L, (NH₄)₂SO₄ 6.00 g/L, NaCl 6.00 g/L, MgSO₄*2H₂O 1.25 g/L; (2) 1.0 g of yeast extract; (3) 1.0 g of trypticase; (4) 3.0 ml of PFN (Pfenning) trace metal solution comprising FeCl₂*4H₂O 1500 mg, ZnSO₄*7H₂O 100 mg, MnCl₂*4H₂O 30 mg, H₃BO₃ 300 mg, CoCl₂*6H₂O 200 mg, CuCl₂*H₂O 10 mg, NiCl₂*6H₂O 20 mg, NaMoO₄*2H₂O 30 mg, Na₂SeO₃ 10 mg, and distilled water up to 1 L; (5) 10.0 ml of B vitamins comprising Pyridoxal HCl 10 mg, Riboflavin 50 mg, Thiamine HCl 50 mg, Nictotinic acid 50 mg, Ca-D-Pantotheinate 50 mg, Lipoic acid 60 mg, p-aminobenzoic acid 50 mg, Folic acid 20 mg, Biotin 20 mg, cyanocobalamin 50 mg, and distilled water up to 1 L; (6) 0.5 g of cysteine HCl; (7) 0.06 g CaCl₂*2H₂O; (8) 2.0 g NaHCO₃; (9) 1.0 mL resazurin (0.01%); and (10) 920.0 mL distilled water) is carried out anaerobically in an atmosphere of 80% nitrogen and 20% CO₂. The pH of the medium is controlled during fermentation and maintained at 5.0 with HCl. If required, adjustments to the pH are made with sterile 10% NaOH or 1.0% acetic acid solution. The medium is transferred to 157.5 mL serum bottles and sealed with butyl rubber stoppers and aluminum seals. The bottles are then autoclaved at 121° C. for 20 minutes.

Approximately 48 hours before commencing the experiment, a seed culture is prepared from a stock culture of the C. ljungdahlii in a bottle similar to those as described above. The seed culture is grown in a shaker incubator at 37° C. and shaken at 100 rpm. Reducing solutions (2.0 ml Na₂S, 2.5% solution and 2.0 ml cysteine-HCl, 3.5% solution) are added to the culture, which is placed in the shaker incubator for approximately 15 minutes to allow for complete oxygen removal and temperature acclimation. Unlike the procedure used for isolating a biologically pure culture of the organism, addition of methane inhibitors is not required in batch fermentations.

Fermentation with C. ljungdahlii is performed in a New Brunswick Scientific Bioflow IIc 2.5-liter fermenter containing nutrient media at 37° C., and a constant fluid level of 1.5 liters is maintained while the fluid is agitated at variable rates of up to 1,000 revolutions per minute with gas introduced at a rate of approximately 500 cubic centimeters per minute. Optimal gas retention times are in the range of three minutes. The gas feed is varied with its uptake by the bacteria, which is in turn a function of the cell density.

Harvesting of the accumulated bacterial biomass was performed at approximately 12-24 hour intervals, as the culture density approached (but before entering) stationary phase. Approximately half of the bioreactor volume was removed by transferring to a separate container via centrifugal pump. An equal volume of fresh or recycled media was then returned to the bioreactor such that the optical density of the reactor was approximately half of its initial value. The bioreactor fermentation was continued according to the above protocol so that multiple cycles of growth and biomass recovery was carried out during a single fermentation run.

Example 2 C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms Engineered for Enhanced Lipid Production

Host cells were engineered to possess genetic modifications to minimize or reduce the degradation of fatty acids—by knocking-out long-chain fatty acid-CoA ligase activity encoded by the endogenous fadD gene. Furthermore, biosynthesis of free fatty acids (FFAs) was enhanced by introducing a thioesterase (TE) gene into a methanotroph of this disclosure (Methylococcus capsulatus). Such recombinant alterations are further described in this example.

Recombinant Nucleic Acid Molecules

The nucleic acid sequences encoding wild-type FadD proteins were the reference standard starting point for designing mutant fadD genes. For example, the wild-type FadD protein sequence encoded by M. trichosporium OB3b, M. capsulatus Bath, M. methanica, M. extorquens, and C. ljungdahlii are provided in GenBank Accession Nos. EFH00931.1, YP_114021.1, YP_004512148.1, YP_002964871.1, and YP_003782065.1, respectively. Hence, a nucleic acid molecule of the fadD genes encoding the above-noted proteins were individually synthesized to incorporate several stop mutations and frame shifts in the 5′-region of the gene from M. trichosporium OB3b (SEQ ID NO.:1), M. methanica (SEQ ID NO.:35), M. extorquens (SEQ ID NO.:52), and C. ljungdahlii (SEQ ID NO.:85). For the M. capsulatus fadD gene, a nucleic acid molecule comprising an internal deletion was synthesized so that the remaining 5′ and 3′ ends of the gene could be joined to maintain the original reading frame (SEQ ID NO.:18).

For C. autoethanogenum, the genome is sequenced and the fadD homolog to E. coli is identified via a tblastn search (a search of the translated nucleotide gene sequences with the protein sequence of the E. coli FadD). A nucleic acid molecule of the C. autoethanogenum fadD gene is synthesized to incorporate several stop mutations and frame shifts in the 5′-region of the gene.

The mutant fadD nucleic acid molecules are individually cloned into a plasmid vector (lacking a methanotroph or clostridia origin of replication and encoding kanamycin resistance) for conjugation, electroporation, or transformation into a C₁ metabolizing microorganism using methods described herein. Such a vector (that does not replicate in a C₁ metabolizing microorganism) ensures that any kanamycin resistant C₁ metabolizing microorganism will have the resistance gene incorporated into the host cell genome due to homologous recombination and replacement of the endogenous fadD gene with the above-noted fadD mutants (such that the recombinant cells would lack or have minimal long-chain fatty acid-CoA ligase activity).

In addition, one or more selected thioesterase sequences, a malonyl CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase (fabD) sequence, and an acetyl-CoA carboxylase sequence (e.g., accA, accB, accC, and accD from E. coli) were codon optimized and synthesized with appropriate promoters. One or more thioesterase genes and an acetyl-CoA carboxylase gene (e.g., accA or accABCD) are then cloned into an appropriate expression vector and conjugated, electroporated or transformed into wild-type or fadD-knockout C₁ metabolizing microorganisms as described herein.

Codon optimized thioesterase sequences are set forth in (1) SEQ ID NOS.:3-13 for M. trichosporium OB3b; (2) SEQ ID NOS.:20-30 for M. capsulatus Bath; (3) SEQ ID NOS.:37-47 for M. methanica; (4) SEQ ID NOS.:54-64 for M. extorquens; (5) SEQ ID NOS.:70-80 for C. autoethanogenum; and (6) SEQ ID NOS.:87-97 for C. ljungdahlii. Codon optimized fabD sequences are set forth in (1) SEQ ID NO.:2 for M. trichosporium OB3b; (2) SEQ ID NO.:19 for M. capsulatus Bath; (3) SEQ ID NO.:36 for M. methanica; (4) SEQ ID NO.:53 for M. extorquens; (5) SEQ ID NO.:69 for C. autoethanogenum; and (6) SEQ ID NO.:86 for C. ljungdahlii. Codon optimized accA, accB, accC, and accD sequences are set forth, respectively, in (1) SEQ ID NOS.:14-17 for M. trichosporium OB3b; (2) SEQ ID NOS.:31-34 for M. capsulatus Bath; (3) SEQ ID NOS.:48-51 for M. methanica; (4) SEQ ID NOS.:65-68 for M. extorquens; (5) SEQ ID NOS.:81-84 for C. autoethanogenum; and (6) SEQ ID NOS.:98-101 for C. ljungdahlii.

Conjugation

The procedure for conjugating plasmids from Escherichia coli into M. trichosporium OB3b or M. methanica was based on the method developed by Martin and Murrell (FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 127:243, 1995), while the procedure for conjugating plasmids from E. coli into M. capsulatus was based on the method reported by Ali and Murrell (Microbiology 155:761, 2009).

Briefly, a mobilizable plasmid containing one or more genes of interest (e.g., mutant fadD, MCT, one or more TE, one or more Acc) and encoding kanamycin resistance was first transformed into E. coli S 17-1 using standard electroporation methods. Transformation was confirmed by selection of kanamycin-resistant colonies on LB-agar containing 30 μg/mL kanamycin. Transformed colonies were inoculated into LB media containing 30 μg/mL kanamycin and shaken overnight at 37° C. A 10 mL aliquot of the overnight culture was then collected on a sterile 47 mm nitrocellulose filter (0.2 mm pore size). The E. coli donor cells were washed on the filter with 50 mL sterile NSM media to remove residual media and antibiotic.

In parallel, a sample of the M. trichosporium OB3b, M. methanica, or M. capsulatus Bath recipient strains were separately inoculated into 100 mL serum bottles containing 20-50 mL NSM media. The headspace of the bottles was then flushed with a 1:1 mixture of oxygen and methane, and the bottles were sealed with butyl rubber septa and crimped. The bottles were shaken continuously in a 30° C. (M. trichosporium OB3b, M. methanica) or a 45° C. (M. capsulatus Bath) incubator until reaching an OD₆₀₀ of approximately 0.3. The cells were then collected on the same filter as the E. coli donor strain. The filter was again washed with 50 mL of sterile NSM media. The filter was placed (cells up) on an NSM agar plate containing 0.2% yeast extract and incubated for 24 h at 30° C. (M. trichosporium OB3b, M. methanica) or 37° C. (M. capsulatus Bath) in the presence of a 1:1 mixture of methane and air. After 24 h, cells were re-suspended in 10 mL sterile (NSM) medium before being concentrated by centrifugation. The harvested cells were re-suspended in 1 mL sterile NSM media and aliquots (100 μL) were spread onto NSM agar plates containing 10 μg/mL kanamycin.

The plates were incubated in sealed chambers containing a 1:1 mixture of methane and air and maintained at 30° C. (M. trichosporium OB3b, M. methanica) or 45° C. (M. capsulatus Bath). The gas mixture was replenished every 2 days until colonies formed, typically after 7-14 days. Colonies were streaked onto NSM plates containing kanamycin to confirm kanamycin resistance as well as to further isolate transformed methanotroph cells from residual E. coli donor cells.

Electroporation—Methanobacterium

The procedure for introducing plasmids into M. extorquens is based on the procedure described by Ueda et al., Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 57:924, 1991. Briefly, wild-type (wt) M. extorquens is cultured at 30° C. in NSM media supplemented with 0.5% methanol. Cells of M. extorquens NR-2 grown to the mid-log phase (1.4×10⁹/ml) are harvested by centrifugation at 6,000×g for 10 min and washed with electroporation buffer (10 mM Tris-HCl, 2 mM MgCl₂.6H₂O, 10% [wt/vol] sucrose [pH 7.5]). Cells are re-suspended in the same buffer at a cell concentration of 7.0×10¹⁰/ml. The cell suspension and vector (70 μg/mL) are mixed at a ratio of 9:1 (vol/vol) in a tube, and then 10 μL is transferred into a space between the electrodes of a chamber where it is equilibrated for 3 minutes. After being subjected to 10 pulses of a 10 kV/cm electric field for 300 μsec/pulse, a 5 μL aliquot of the mixture is transferred to a clean tube and 0.2 mL NSM medium is added. The cell suspension is then incubated for 2 h at 30° C. to allow expression of the antibiotic resistance genes prior to plating on NSM plates containing 0.5 methanol and 20 μg/mL kanamycin.

The plates were incubated at 30° C. until colonies formed. Colonies were streaked onto duplicate plates to confirm kanamycin resistance as well as to further isolate transformed methylotroph cells from residual E. coli donor cells.

Electroporation—Clostridium

Transformation methods for C. autoethanogenum or C. ljungdahlii are performed as described in U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2011/0236941, or using a modified protocol for C. tyrobutyricum (Zhu et al., Biotechnol. Bioeng. 90:154, 2005). Briefly, to make competent cells, a 50 mL culture of C. autoethanogenum is subcultured to fresh media for 3 consecutive days according to the culturing conditions described herein. These cells are used to inoculate 50 mL PETC media containing 40 mM DL-threonine at an OD₆₀₀ of 0.05. When the culture reaches an OD₆₀₀ of 0.4, the cells are transferred into an anaerobic chamber and harvested at 4,700×g and 4° C. The culture is washed twice with ice-cold electroporation buffer (270 mM sucrose, 1 mM MgCl₂, 7 mM sodium phosphate, pH 7.4) and finally suspended in a volume of 600 μl fresh electroporation buffer. This mixture is transferred into a pre-cooled electroporation cuvette with a 0.4 cm electrode gap containing 1 μg of vector (lacking a Clostridium origin of replication and containing a nucleic acid molecule of interest and encoding clarithromycin resistance) and immediately pulsed using the Gene pulser Xcell electroporation system (Bio-Rad) with the following settings: 2.5 kV, 600 μl, and 25 μF. Time constants of 3.7-4.0 ms are achieved. The culture is transferred into 5 ml fresh media. Regeneration of the cells is monitored at a wavelength of 600 nm using a Spectronic Helios Epsilon Spectrophotometer (Thermo) equipped with a tube holder. After an initial drop in biomass, the cells start growing again. Once the biomass has doubled from that point, the cells are harvested, suspended in 200 μl fresh media and plated on selective PETC plates (containing 1.2% Bacto™ Agar (BD)) with 4 μg/μl clarithromycin. After 4-5 days of incubation with 30 psi steel mill gas at 37° C., colonies are clearly visible.

Alternatively, after the electroporation pulse, the cells are transferred into 5 mL prewarmed medium in a Hungate tube and incubated at 37° C. until growth is visible (measured in Hungate tubes in a photometer). Aliquots of the transformants are inoculated into 5 mL liquid medium and spread onto clarithromycin-containing plates to develop mutant colonies.

The selected recombinant colonies are used to inoculate 2 ml PETC media containing 4 μg/μl clarithromycin. When growth occurs, the culture is scaled up into 5 ml and later 50 ml PETC media containing 4 μg/μl clarithromycin and 30 psi steel mill gas as the carbon source.

Recombinant C₁ Metabolizing Bacteria

Transformation is confirmed by resistance of the cells to antibiotic selection, and gene expression is confirmed by PCR, northern blot, western blot, or ELISA methods. For example, to verify transfer, plasmid DNA can be isolated and subjected to PCR using the illustra PuReTaq Ready-To-Go™ PCR Beads (GE Healthcare) using standard conditions (95° C. for 5 min; 32 cycles of 95° C. for 30 s, 50° C. for 30 s, and 72° C. for 1 min; 72° C. for 10 min). As a further control, 1 μl each of the isolated plasmids are re-transformed into E. coli XL1-Blue MRF′ Kan (Stratagene, La Jolla, Calif.), from where the plasmids can be isolated cleanly and verified by restriction digests.

Methods for identifying homologous recombination events are well-established in the art, such as PCR and sequencing using unique primers in the genome and the vector to confirm proper insertion. Recombinant bacteria identified as having a proper insertion are then grown in the absence of selective pressure (e.g., without kanamycin or clarithromycin) for several generations, and kanamycin-sensitive clones are identified by replica plating (or equivalent technique). Approximately 50% of the kanamycin-sensitive revertants should possess the mutated form of the target gene in place of wild-type, which is confirmed by PCR and sequencing. Loss of fadD expression or function can be verified by one or more of (1) PCR and sequencing, (2) northern blot analysis, and (3) assaying for acyl-CoA synthetase activity.

For acyl-CoA synthetase activity, the method of, for example, Kameda et al. (J. Biol. Chem. 256:5702, 1981) can be used by growing cells to mid-log phase in NSM with antibiotics as required, harvesting cells by centrifugation, washing twice with NSM, suspending the cells to a density of 1.2×10⁹ cells/mL in 10 mM Tris-HCl, pH 7.5, and then lysing by three cycles of sonication on ice. Reaction mixtures are prepared, in a total volume of 0.5 ml, to include 200 mM Tris-HCl, pH 7.5, 2.5 mM ATP, 8 mM MgCl, 2 mM EDTA, 20 mM NaF, 0.1% Triton® X-100, 10 pM [³H]oleate, 0.5 mM coenzyme A, and cell extract. The enzyme reactions are initiated with the addition of coenzyme A, incubated at 35° C. for 10 minutes, and terminated by the addition of 2.5 ml isopropyl alcohol:n-heptane:1M H₂SO₄ (40:10:1). The radioactive oleic acid is removed by organic extraction using n-heptane, while oleoyl-CoA formed during the reaction remains in the aqueous fraction to be quantified by scintillation counting. Protein concentrations in the enzyme extracts are determined using the Bradford assay with bovine serum albumin as a standard.

Production of Fatty Acids from C₁ Substrates (CH₄ and CO)

For methanotrophs, wild-type or fadD-knockout M. trichosporium OB3b, M. methanica, M. extorquens, or M. capsulatus Bath transformed with a vector containing genes encoding one or more thioesterase genes or overexpressing acetyl-CoA carboxylase genes are used to inoculate 100 mL serum bottles or culture tubes containing 20-50 mL NSM media and 10 μg/mL kanamycin. For M. extorquens, the media is supplemented with 0.5% methanol as a carbon source, whereas the bottle headspace is flushed with a 1:1 mixture of oxygen and methane as the carbon source for M. trichosporium OB3b, M. methanica, and M. capsulatus Bath. The bottles are sealed with butyl rubber septa and crimped. The bottles or tubes are then shaken continuously at a rate of 200-250 rpm during incubation at 30° C. (M. trichosporium OB3b, M. methanica, M. extorquens) or 42-45° C. (M. capsulatus Bath).

For Clostridia, wild-type or fadD-knockout C. autoethanogenum or C. ljungdahlii transformed with a vector containing genes encoding one or more thioesterase enzymes and with or without acetyl-CoA carboxylase genes are used to inoculate 2 ml PETC media containing 4 μg/μl clarithromycin. When growth occurs, the culture is scaled up into 5 ml and later 50 ml PETC media containing 4 μg/μl clarithromycin and 30 psi steel mill gas as the carbon source. The bottles are then shaken continuously at a rate of 200-250 rpm during incubation at 37° C.

Quantification of fatty acids produced by the recombinant C₁ metabolizing bacteria is performed using a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC/MS). Fatty acids in the cell culture are extracted by vortexing vigorously with butyl acetate containing undecanoic acid as an internal standard for GC/MS analysis of the extract. After brief centrifugation of the mixture, a small portion of the organic layer was transferred to a separate vial, followed by addition of an equal volume of N,O-Bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide. The sample was analyzed by GC with a mass spectrometer detector (HP 5792) using an Agilent HP-5MS GC/MS column (30.0 m×250 μM×0.25 μM film thickness). A split ratio of 20:1 at 250° C. was used for the injector and helium was the carrier gas at a flow of 1.2 mL/min. The oven temperature was held at 60° C. for the 1 minute, followed by a temperature gradient increase of 19° C./min until reaching a temperature of 250° C. The concentration of fatty acids in the cell culture was calculated using selective ion mode based on the calibration curves of fatty acid standards. Since methane was the only carbon source provided to the cells, all fatty acids produced must have been derived from methane.

Results

The fatty acid profile of M. capsulatus Bath was altered by knocking out fadD and by introducing and expressing an E. coli thioesterase gene. First, the E. coli thioesterase gene with the periplasmic targeting sequence removed (TesA′) was synthesized using three different codon compositions (TesA′-3, SEQ ID NO:102; TesA′-37, SEQ ID NO:103; and TesA′-20, SEQ ID NO:104) designed to generate variants with differing expression levels. The TesA′ variants were cloned into an IncP-based plasmid (comprising an Inc-P oriV and oriT) and operatively connected to a promoter that functions in methanotrophs. The recombinant expression vector containing TesA′ was transformed into M. capsulatus as described herein. M. capsulatus cultures in a 5 mL volume in 150 mL sealed serum bottles were grown with 40 mL methane and 80 mL oxygen for 5 days. After the growth stage, 1 mL of each culture was assayed for fatty acid concentration and composition using GC/MS as described herein. Measured free fatty acid values were normalized to OD₆₀₀ by culture. Note that the C16:1 fraction is comprised of at least three different isomers with the most abundant being Δ9-cis palmitoleic acid (data not shown).

In parallel, a homolog of the E. coli acyl coenzyme A (CoA) synthetase (fadD) was recombinantly knocked-out with SEQ ID NO:18 in the M. capsulatus genome as described herein and confirmed by PCR analysis. FadD knockout has been shown in several other microbial strains to increase free fatty acid levels (see, e.g., Lennen et al., Trends Biotechnol. 12:659, 2012). The M. capsulatus fadD knock-out mutant did not show a significant increase in free fatty acid levels, which indicates that one or more additional FadD homologs may be present in the M. capsulatus genome, but lipid profile was shifted since there was an increase C 18:0 lipids.

The free fatty acid pools in the transformed cells increased dramatically (see FIG. 3A), with the increase primarily attributed to increased levels of C16:0 and C18:0 lipids (see FIG. 3B).

Example 3 Lipid Extracting from C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms

The oil composition contained within a harvested bacterial biomass was extracted using a modified version of Folch's extraction protocol (Folch et al., J. Biol. Chem. 226:497, 1957), performed at 20° C. (i.e., room temperature) and in an extraction solution made up of one volume methanol in two volumes chloroform (CM solution). About 5 g wet cell weight (WCW) of either fresh bacterial biomass (or bacterial biomass stored at −80° C. and subsequently thawed) was used for extractions. A 100 mL CM solution was added to the cell material and the mixture was extracted vigorously in a separatory funnel. After at least 10 minutes, three phases were resolved. The organic phase containing extracted lipids settled at the bottom of the separatory funnel, which was drained into a clean glass bottle. The middle layer contained primarily lysed cellular materials and could be separated from the light water phase containing salts and other soluble cellular components.

Optionally, solids in the water phase can be concentrated using a centrifuge or other mechanical concentration equipment. The water removed from the solids may be recycled, while the solids, with some residual water, can be fed to a solids processing unit.

To enhance the lipid extraction efficiency, a second extraction step was carried out by adding an additional 100 mL fresh CM solution directly into the separatory funnel containing the remaining lysed cell mass and residual water. The mixture was again mixed thoroughly, the phases allowed to separate, and the bottom organic phases from the two extractions were pooled. The pooled organic phases were then washed with 100 mL deionized water in a separatory funnel to remove any residual water-soluble material. The separated organic fraction was again isolated from the bottom of the separatory funnel and solvent was removed by rotary evaporation with heat, preferably in the absence of oxygen, or by evaporation at 55° C. under a stream of nitrogen.

TABLE 1 Extracted Lipid Content from Three Different Methanotrophs Lipid Fraction Batch No. Reference Strain (g/g DCW)* 68C Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b 40.1 62A Methylococcus capsulatus Bath 10.3 66A Methylomonas sp. 16a 9.3 *Grams of extracted material per gram of dry cell weight (DCW)

The solidified oil compositions extracted from the harvested cultures of M. trichosporium OB3b, Methylococcus capsulatus Bath, and Methylomonas sp. 16a were each weighed and are shown as the weight fraction of the original dry cell weight (DCW) in Table 1. These data show that a significant fraction of the DCW from these C₁ metabolizing microorganisms is made up of lipids.

The oil composition from Methylomonas sp. 16a biomass was also extracted using hexane:isopropanol (HIP) extraction method of Hara and Radin (Anal. Biochem. 90:420, 1978). Analysis of the oil composition extracted using the HIP method showed that the oil composition was essentially identical to the oil composition extracted using the modified Folch method (data not shown).

Example 4 Fatty Acid Methyl Ester Conversion of Lipids from C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms

The lipid fractions extracted from M. capsulatus Bath, M. trichosporium OB3b, and Methylomonas sp. 16a culture biomass in the form of dry solids were individually hydrolyzed with potassium hydroxide (KOH) and converted into fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) via reaction with methanol in a single step. About 5 g of extracted solid lipids in a 10 mL glass bottle were dissolved with 5 mL of 0.2 M KOH solution of toluene:methanol (1:1 v/v). The bottle was agitated vigorously and then mixed at 250 rpm at 42° C. for 60 minutes, after which the solution was allowed to cool to ambient temperature and transferred to a separatory funnel. Approximately 5 mL distilled water and 5 mL CM solution were added to the separatory funnel, mixed, and then the phases were allowed to separate by gravity or by centrifugation (3,000 rpm, 25° C.) for 5 minutes. The top aqueous layer was removed, which contains dissolved glycerol phosphate esters, while the heavy oil phase (bottom) was collected and concentrated to dryness by rotary evaporation or by a constant nitrogen stream.

Analysis of FFAs and FAMEs found in lipids from each methanotroph culture was performed using a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC/MS). The solids collected before and after the hydrolysis/transesterification step were dissolved in 300 μL butyl acetate containing undecanoic acid as an internal standard for GC/MS analysis. The resulting solution was centrifuged for 5 minutes at 14,000 rpm to remove insoluble residues. The same volume equivalent of N,O-Bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide was added to the supernatant from the centrifugation step and vortexed briefly. Samples were loaded on an GC equipped with mass spectrometer detector (HP 5792), and an Agilent HP-5MS GC/MS column (30.0 m×250 μm×0.25 μm film thickness) was used to separate the FFAs and FAMEs. Identity of FFAs and FAMEs was confirmed with retention time and electron ionization of mass spectra of their standards. The GC/MS method utilized helium as the carrier gas at a flow of 1.2 mL/min. The injection port was held at 250° C. with a split ratio of 20:1. The oven temperature was held at 60° C. for 1 minute followed by a temperature gradient comprising an 8° C. increase/min until 300° C. The % area of each FFA and FAME was calculated based on total ions from the mass detector response.

The solid residue collected before and after hydrolysis/transesterification were analyzed for FFAs and FAMEs by GC/MS (see Table 2). Also, chromatograms from the GC/MS analysis are provided in FIGS. 4-6.

TABLE 2 Relative composition of FFA and FAME in Extracted Lipids Before and After KOH Hydrolysis/Esterification M. capsulatus M. trichosporium Methylomonas Bath OB3b sp. 16a With Without With Without With Without hydrol- hydrol- hydrol- hydrol- hydrol- hydrol- Fatty Acid ysis ysis ysis ysis ysis ysis Type % Area % Area % Area C14:0 FFA — — — — — 12.9 C16:0 FFA 0.5 84.1 — 43.7 — 8.1 C16:1 FFA — 13.4 — — — 76.1 C18:0 FFA 0.4 2.5 — 31.2 — 1.3 C18:1 FFA — — — 25.1 — 1.5 C14:0 FAME 3.4 — — — 7.2 — C16:0 FAME 54.4 — 1.4 — 14.7 — C16:1 FAME 41.3 — 6.8 — 61.3 — C18:0 FAME — — 1.0 — N.D. — C18:1 FAME — — 90.8 — 16.8 — * — = Not detectable; % Area MS detector response-Total ions

As is evident from Table 2, and FIGS. 4-6, extracted oil compositions before hydrolysis/transesterification have abundant free fatty acids and additional fatty acids present as (most likely) di- and tri-acyl glycerides (which are not detected on the GC/MS trace), but the FFAs are converted into fatty acid methyl esters of various lengths after hydrolysis/transesterification. These data indicate that oil compositions from the C₁ metabolizing microorganisms of this disclosure can be refined and used to make high-value molecules.

Example 5 Biofuel Production Using Oil Compositions from C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms

The extracted oil compositions from C₁ metabolizing microorganisms can be processed at a co-located refinery or transported to a distant refinery. A refinery is used to convert triglycerides from bio-renewable feeds (such as fats, greases, and methanotroph oils) into a mixture of liquid hydrocarbon fuels, primarily biodiesel and biojet fuel, a high quality synthetic paraffinic kerosene (SPK). The process requires hydrogen, which can be produced on-site using methane reforming or is provided by co-locating the fermentation facility at an existing refinery.

The refinery can be run in a Mixed Mode, wherein the output is a mixture of biodiesel and biojet fuel, or a Diesel Mode, wherein the output is primarily biodiesel.

During refining, fatty acids and glycerides are converted to SPK in three steps. First, raw feedstocks are treated to remove catalyst contaminants and water as needed. In the second step, fatty acid chains are transformed into n-paraffins in a hydrotreater. An example is oleic acid conversion to n-octadecane via the hydrogenation and deoxygenation reactions in the hydrotreater. For most bio-oils, fats, and greases, the hydrotreater liquid product is mainly a C₁₅-C₁₈ n-paraffin composition. In the third step of the process, these long straight-chain paraffins are hydrocracked into shorter branched paraffins. The hydrocracked products fall mainly in the kerosene boiling range.

The produced SPK preferably meets or exceeds all jet fuel fit-for-purpose specifications except density. The high H-to-C ratio of SPK, which gives its excellent thermal stability and low particulate emission attribute, means a lower density hydrocarbon composition: 760-770 kg/m³ compared to the minimum ASTM specification value of 775 kg/m³. But, this is not an issue with petroleum jet fuel:SPK blends (e.g., 50/50).

Example 6 Stable Carbon Isotope Distribution in Lipids from C₁ Metabolizing Microorganisms

Dry samples of M. trichosporium biomass and lipid fractions were analyzed for carbon and nitrogen content (% dry weight), and carbon (¹³C) and nitrogen (¹⁵N) stable isotope ratios via elemental analyzer/continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry using a CHNOS Elemental Analyzer (vario ISOTOPE cube, Elementar, Hanau, Germany) coupled with an IsoPrime100 IRMS (Isoprime, Cheadle, UK). Samples of methanotrophic biomass cultured in fermenters or serum bottles were centrifuged, resuspended in deionized water and volumes corresponding to 0.2-2 mg carbon (about 0.5-5 mg dry cell weight) were transferred to 5×9 mm tin capsules (Costech Analytical Technologies, Inc., Valencia, Calif.) and dried at 80° C. for 24 hours. Similarly, previously extracted lipid fractions were suspended in chloroform and volumes containing 0.1-1.5 mg carbon were transferred to tin capsules and evaporated to dryness at 80° C. for 24 hours. Standards containing 0.1 mg carbon provided reliable δ¹³C values.

The isotope ratio is expressed in “delta” notation (‰), wherein the isotopic composition of a material relative to that of a standard on a per million deviation basis is given by δ¹³C (or δ¹⁵N)=(R_(Sample)/R_(Standard−1))×1,000, wherein R is the molecular ratio of heavy to light isotope forms. The standard for carbon is the Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite (V-PDB) and for nitrogen is air. The NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) proposed SRM (Standard Reference Material) No. 1547, peach leaves, was used as a calibration standard. All isotope analyses were conducted at the Center for Stable Isotope Biogeochemistry at the University of California, Berkeley. Long-term external precision for C and N isotope analyses is 0.10‰ and 0.15‰, respectively.

M. trichosporium strain OB3b was grown on methane in three different fermentation batches, M. capsulatus Bath was grown on methane in two different fermentation batches, and Methylomonas sp. 16a was grown on methane in a single fermentation batch. The biomass from each of these cultures was analyzed for stable carbon isotope distribution (δ¹³C values; see Table 3).

TABLE 3 Stable Carbon Isotope Distribution in Different Methanotrophs Methanotroph Batch No. EFT (h)† OD₆₀₀ DCW* δ¹³C Cells Mt OB3b 68A 48 1.80 1.00 −57.9 64 1.97 1.10 −57.8 71 2.10 1.17 −58.0 88 3.10 1.73 −58.1 97 4.30 2.40 −57.8 113 6.00 3.35 −57.0 127 8.40 4.69 −56.3 Mt OB3b 68B 32 2.90 1.62 −58.3 41 4.60 2.57 −58.4 47 5.89 3.29 −58.0 56 7.90 4.41 −57.5 Mt OB3b 68C 72 5.32 2.97 −57.9 79.5 5.90 3.29 −58.0 88 5.60 3.12 −57.8 94 5.62 3.14 −57.7 Mc Bath 62B 10 2.47 0.88 −59.9 17.5 5.80 2.06 −61.0 20 7.32 2.60 −61.1 23 9.34 3.32 −60.8 26 10.30 3.66 −60.1 Mc Bath 62A 10 2.95 1.05 −55.9 13.5 3.59 1.27 −56.8 17.5 5.40 1.92 −55.2 23 6.08 2.16 −57.2 26 6.26 2.22 −57.6 Mms 16a 66B 16 2.13 0.89 −65.5 18 2.59 1.09 −65.1 20.3 3.62 1.52 −65.5 27 5.50 2.31 −66.2 40.5 9.80 4.12 −66.3 *DCW, Dry Cell Weight is reported in g/L calculated from the measured optical densities (OD₆₀₀) using specific correlation factors relating OD of 1.0 to 0.558 g/L for Mt OB3b, OD of 1.0 to 0.355 g/L for Mc Bath, and OD of 1.0 to 0.42 g/L for Mms 16a. For Mt OB3b, the initial concentration of bicarbonate used per fermentation was 1.2 mM or 0.01% (Batch No. 68C) and 0.1% or 12 mM (Batch Nos. 68A and 68B). †EFT = effective fermentation time in hours

In addition, stable carbon isotope analysis was performed for biomass and corresponding lipid fractions (see Table 4) from strains Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b (Mt OB3b), Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (Mc Bath), and Methylomonas sp. 16a (Mms 16a) grown on methane in bioreactors as described in Example 1.

TABLE 4 Stable Carbon Isotope Distribution in Cells and Lipids Batch No. Strain δ¹³C Cells δ¹³C Lipids 68C Mt OB3b −57.7 −48.6 62A Mc Bath −57.6 −52.8 66A Mms 16a −64.4 −42.2

Biomass from strains Mt OB3b, Mc Bath and Mms 16a were harvested at 94 h (3.14 g DCW/L), 26 h (2.2 g DCW/L) and 39 h (1.14 g DCW/L), respectively. The δ¹³C values for lipids in Table 4 represent an average of duplicate determinations.

Example 7 Effect of Methane Source and Purity on Stable Carbon Isotope Distribution in Lipids

To examine methanotroph growth on methane containing natural gas components, a series of 0.5-liter serum bottles containing 100 mL defined media MMS 1.0 were inoculated with Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b or Methylococcus capsulatus Bath from a serum bottle batch culture (5% v/v) grown in the same media supplied with a 1:1 (v/v) mixture of methane and air. The composition of medium MMS 1.0 was as follows: 0.8 mM MgSO₄*7H₂O, 30 mM NaNO₃, 0.14 mM CaCl₂, 1.2 mM NaHCO₃, 2.35 mM KH₂PO₄, 3.4 mM K₂HPO₄, 20.7 μM Na₂MoO₄*2H₂O, 6 μM CuSO₄*5H₂O, 10 μM Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA, and 1 mL per liter of a trace metals solution (containing, per L: 500 mg FeSO4*7H₂O, 400 mg ZnSO₄*7H₂O, 20 mg MnCl₂*7H2O, 50 mg CoCl₂*6H₂O, 10 mg NiCl₂*6H₂O, 15 mg H₃BO₃, 250 mg EDTA). Phosphate, bicarbonate, and Fe^(III)—Na-EDTA were added after media was autoclaved and cooled. The final pH of the media was 7.0±0.1.

The inoculated bottles were sealed with rubber sleeve stoppers and injected with 60 mL methane gas added via syringe through sterile 0.45 μm filter and sterile 27 G needles. Duplicate cultures were each injected with 60 mL volumes of (A) methane of 99% purity (grade 2.0, Praxair through Alliance Gas, San Carlos, Calif.), (B) methane of 70% purity representing a natural gas standard (Sigma-Aldrich; also containing 9% ethane, 6% propane, 3% methylpropane, 3% butane, and other minor hydrocarbon components), (C) methane of 85% purity delivered as a 1:1 mixture of methane sources A and B; and (D) >93% methane (grade 1.3, Specialty Chemical Products, South Houston, Tex.; in-house analysis showed composition >99% methane). The cultures were incubated at 30° C. (M. trichosporium strain OB3b) or 42° C. (M. capsulatus Bath) with rotary shaking at 250 rpm and growth was measured at approximately 12 hour intervals by withdrawing 1 mL samples to determine OD₆₀₀. At these times, the bottles were vented and headspace replaced with 60 mL of the respective methane source (A, B, C, or D) and 60 mL of concentrated oxygen (at least 85% purity). At about 24 hour intervals, 5 mL samples were removed, cells recovered by centrifugation (8,000 rpm, 10 minutes), and then stored at −80° C. before analysis.

Analysis of carbon and nitrogen content (% dry weight), and carbon (¹³C) and nitrogen (¹⁵N) stable isotope ratios, for methanotrophic biomass derived from M. trichosporium strain OB3b and M. capsulatus Bath were carried out as described in Example 6. Table 5 shows the results of stable carbon isotope analysis for biomass samples from M. capsulatus Bath grown on methane having different levels of purity and in various batches of bottle cultures.

TABLE 5 Stable Carbon Isotope Distribution of M. capsulatus Bath Grown on Different Methane Sources having Different Purity Methane* Batch No. Time (h)† OD₆₀₀ DCW (g/L) δ¹³C Cells A 62C 22 1.02 0.36 −40.3 56 2.01 0.71 −41.7 73 2.31 0.82 −42.5 62D 22 1.14 0.40 −39.3 56 2.07 0.73 −41.6 73 2.39 0.85 −42.0 B 62E 22 0.47 0.17 −44.7 56 0.49 0.17 −45.4 73 0.29 0.10 −45.4 62F 22 0.62 0.22 −42.3 56 0.63 0.22 −43.6 73 0.30 0.11 −43.7 C 62G 22 0.70 0.25 −40.7 56 1.14 0.40 −44.8 73 1.36 0.48 −45.8 62H 22 0.62 0.22 −40.9 56 1.03 0.37 −44.7 73 1.23 0.44 −45.9 *Methane purity: A: 99% methane, grade 2.0 (min. 99%); B: 70% methane, natural gas standard (contains 9% ethane, 6% propane, 3% methylpropane, 3% butane); C: 85% methane (1:1 mix of A and B methane) †Time = bottle culture time in hours

The average δ¹³C for M. capsulatus Bath grown on one source of methane (A, 99%) was −41.2±1.2, while the average δ¹³C for M. capsulatus Bath grown on a different source of methane (B, 70%) was −44.2±1.2. When methane sources A and B were mixed, an intermediate average δ¹³C of −43.8±2.4 was observed. These data show that the δ¹³C of cell material grown on methane sources A and B are significantly different from each other due to the differences in the δ¹³C of the input methane. But, cells grown on a mixture of the two gasses preferentially utilize ¹²C and, therefore, show a trend to more negative δ¹³C values.

A similar experiment was performed to examine whether two different methanotrophs, Methylococcus capsulatus Bath and Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, grown on different methane sources and in various batches of bottle cultures showed a difference in δ¹³C distribution (see Table 6).

TABLE 6 Stable Carbon Isotope Distribution of Different Methanotrophs Grown on Different Methane Sources of Different Purity Batch Time DCW δ¹³C Strain Methane* No. (h)† OD₆₀₀ (g/L) Cells Mc A 62I 18 0.494 0.18 −54.3 Bath 40 2.33 0.83 −42.1 48 3.08 1.09 −37.1 Mc D 62J 18 0.592 0.21 −38.3 Bath 40 1.93 0.69 −37.8 48 2.5 0.89 −37.8 Mc D 62K 18 0.564 0.20 −38.6 Bath 40 1.53 0.54 −37.5 48 2.19 0.78 −37.6 Mt A 68D 118 0.422 0.24 −50.2 OB3b 137 0.99 0.55 −47.7 162 1.43 0.80 −45.9 Mt A 68E 118 0.474 0.26 −49.9 OB3b 137 1.065 0.59 −47.6 162 1.51 0.84 −45.2 Mt D 68F 118 0.534 0.30 −45.6 OB3b 137 1.119 0.62 −38.7 162 1.63 0.91 −36.4 Mt D 68G 118 0.544 0.30 −44.8 OB3b 137 1.131 0.63 −39.1 162 1.6 0.89 −34.2 *Methane sources and purity: A: 99% methane (grade 2.0); D: >93% methane (grade 1.3) †Time = bottle culture time in hours

The average δ³C for M. capsulatus grown on a first methane source (A) was −44.5±8.8, while the average δ¹³C for M. trichosporium was −47.8±2.0 grown on the same methane source. The average δ¹³C for M. capsulatus grown on the second methane source (B) was −37.9±0.4, while the average δ¹³C for M. trichosporium was −39.8±4.5. These data show that the δ¹³C of cell material grown on a methane source is highly similar to the δ¹³C of cell material from a different strain grown on the same source of methane. Thus, the observed δ¹³C of cell material appears to be primarily dependent on the composition of the input gas rather than a property of a particular bacterial strain being studied.

The various embodiments described above can be combined to provide further embodiments. All of the U.S. patents, U.S. patent application publications, U.S. patent applications, foreign patents, foreign patent applications and non-patent publications referred to in this specification and/or listed in the Application Data Sheet, including but not limited to U.S. Patent Application No. 61/671,542, are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Aspects of the embodiments can be modified, if necessary, to employ concepts of the various patents, applications and publications to provide further embodiments.

These and other changes can be made to the embodiments in light of the above-detailed description. In general, in the following claims, the terms used should not be construed to limit the claims to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification and the claims, but should be construed to include all possible embodiments along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, the claims are not limited by the disclosure. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A biomass comprising whole and/or lysed cells of a methanotroph bacteria and, a δ¹³C ranging from about −30‰ to about −70‰, wherein said methanotroph bacteria comprises a heterologous polynucleotide and wherein said methanotroph bacteria comprising said heterologous polynucleotide produce a biomass comprised of whole and/or lysed cells with a δ¹³C ranging from about −30‰ to about −70‰ when cultured with a C₁ substrate.
 2. The biomass of claim 1, wherein said δ¹³C of said biomass ranges from about −40‰ to about −65‰.
 3. The biomass of claim 1, wherein said methanotroph bacteria is selected from the group consisting of Methylomonas sp. 16a (ATCC PTA 2402), Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b (NRRL B-11,196), Methylosinus sporium (NRRL B-11,197), Methylocystis parvus (NRRL B-11,198), Methylomonas methanica (NRRL B-11,199), Methylomonas albus (NRRL B-11,200), Methylobacter capsulatus Y (NRRL B-11,201), Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (NCIMB 11132), Methylobacterium organophilum (ATCC 27,886), Methylomonas sp. AJ-3670 (FERM P-2400), Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, Methylocella silvestris, Methylacidiphilum infernorum, Methylibium petroleiphilum, Methylobacterium populi, and any combination thereof.
 4. The biomass of claim 1, wherein said methanotroph bacteria comprises a heterologous polynucleotide encoding a thioesterase, malonyl-CoAacyl carrier protein transacylase, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, and any combination thereof, and said methanotroph bacteria accumulates an increased level of fatty acids as compared to a wild-type methanotroph bacteria without said heterologous polynucleotide and grown under same conditions.
 5. The biomass of claim 4, wherein said heterologous polynucleotide encoding said thioesterase is codon optimized for expression in said methanotroph bacteria.
 6. The biomass of claim 5, wherein said heterologous polynucleotide encoding said thioesterase is an E. coli tesA lacking a periplasmic targeting sequence.
 7. The biomass of claim 4, wherein said heterologous polynucleotide encoding said malonyl-CoAacyl carrier protein transacylase is an E. coli fabD, and wherein said heterologous polynucleotide is codon optimized for expression in said methanotroph bacteria.
 8. The biomass of claim 4, wherein said heterologous polynucleotide encoding said acetyl-CoA carboxylase is an E. coli accA, accB, accC, accD, or any combination thereof, and wherein said heterologous polynucleotide is codon optimized for expression in said methanotroph bacteria.
 9. The biomass of claim 4, wherein said methanotroph bacteria further comprises a mutation that minimizes or eliminates fatty acid-CoA ligase activity, wherein said mutation is in an endogenous fatty acid-CoA ligase gene.
 10. A biomass comprising (a) a culture of said methanotroph bacteria of claim 1 together with a culture media in which said methanotroph bacteria were grown; (b) said methanotroph bacteria of claim 1 grown and recovered from said culture media; or (c) a spent media composition recovered from said culture of said methanotroph bacteria of (a), and wherein said biomass comprises a δ¹³C ranging from about −30‰ to about −70‰.
 11. The biomass of claim 10, wherein said biomass is said spent media composition recovered from said culture of said methanotroph bacteria of (a), and further comprising an oil composition that is extracted or concentrated from said spent media composition.
 12. A method of producing biomass, comprising culturing methanotroph bacteria in a controlled culturing unit in the presence of a feedstock comprising a C₁ substrate under conditions and for a time sufficient to produce a biomass, wherein said methanotroph bacteria comprises a heterologous polynucleotide and wherein said biomass comprises whole and/or lysed cells of said methanotroph bacteria and a δ¹³C range from about −30‰ to about −70‰.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein said methanotroph bacteria are cultured in a controlled culture unit selected from the group consisting of a fermentor, a bioreactor, a hollow fiber cell, a packed bed bioreactor, and combinations thereof.
 14. The method of claim 12, wherein said feedstock comprising a C₁ substrate is natural gas or methane.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein said biomass comprises (a) a culture of said methanotroph bacteria together with a culture media in which said methanotroph bacteria were grown; (b) said methanotroph bacteria recovered from said culture media; of (c) a spent media composition recovered from said culture media comprising said methanotroph bacteria.
 16. The method of claim 12, wherein said methanotroph bacteria is selected from the group consisting of Methylomonas sp. 16a (ATCC PTA 2402), Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b (NRRL B-11,196), Methylosinus sporium (NRRL B-11,197), Methylocystis parvus (NRRL B-11,198), Methylomonas methanica (NRRL B-11,199), Methylomonas albus (NRRL B-11,200), Methylobacter capsulatus Y (NRRL B-11,201), Methylococcus capsulatus Bath (NCIMB 11132), Methylobacterium organophilum (ATCC 27,886), Methylomonas sp. AJ-3670 (FERM P-2400), Methylomicrobium alcaliphilum, Methylocella silvestris, Methylacidiphilum infernorum, Methylibium petroleiphilum, Methylobacterium populi, and any combination thereof.
 17. The method of 12, wherein said methanotroph bacteria are cultured in a bioreactor comprising balanced media.
 18. The method of claim 12, wherein said methanotroph bacteria are cultured in a bioreactor comprising unbalanced media having limiting quantities of phosphorus, nitrogen, trace elements, oxygen relative to a balanced media, or any combination thereof.
 19. The method of claim 12, wherein said δ¹³C of said biomass ranges from about −40‰ to about −65‰. 